Dorothy Abernathy, The Associated Press bureau chief for West Virginia and Virginia, shares the 10 things you need to know Wednesday, July 16, 2014. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items, upcoming events and stories in West Virginia newspapers.
1. ISRAELI RAIDS ON GAZA INTENSIFY
Hundreds of Palestinians flee Gaza border areas after Israel tells them to leave ahead of further strikes.
2. AGENCY TOUGHENS PROTECTIONS FOR PREGNANT WORKERS
New U.S. government guidelines prohibit employers from forcing pregnant workers to take leave and acknowledge that bosses may have to decrease workloads.
3. JAPAN SET TO REOPEN FIRST NUCLEAR PLANT SINCE FUKUSHIMA
The only facility to win approval to operate after the fatal disaster three years ago had to comply with stringent safety requirements.
4. HOW LOCAL FOODS ARE BECOMING BIG BUSINESS
Organizations delivering directly from local farms to major institutions are growing, eliminating scores of middlemen from farm to fork.
5. WHO IS PROMISING TO HELP WASHINGTON ON IMMIGRATION
Mexico says it will tighten its porous border with Guatemala where thousands of migrants cross, hoping to continue north to the U.S.
6. NYC MAYOR ON LIRR: WHAT, ME WORRY?
Bill de Blasio has a vacation in Italy planned–funded in part by taxpayers–and seemingly no intention of letting a looming strike at the nation’s largest commuter railroad hold him back. Besides, he says, people “now, because of technology, can work from home.”
7. WHERE MIDDLE EASTERN FOOD IS HEADED
Entrepreneurs from the region’s buzzing restaurant scene are eyeing franchise opportunities in the U.S. and Europe.
8. ‘COMMUNITIES IN DANGER OF RUNNING OUT’
That’s what a state regulator says as water use by Californians rises despite the governor’s pleas to cut back during the severe drought.
9. BARKING UP THE WRONG CAREER TREE? TRY LUMBERJACK SCHOOL
Don’t let the absence of bushy beards, plaid shirts and even suspenders fool you. Paul Smith’s College teaches aspiring woodsmen to do things like throw an ax and climb a 45-foot pole.
10. ‘THIS IS ABOUT DEREK JETER’
That’s what Tampa Bay pitcher David Price says about the 14th and final All-Star Game for the retiring New York Yankees shortstop.
