Dorothy Abernathy, The Associated Press bureau chief for West Virginia and Virginia, shares the 10 things you need to know Friday, May 23, 2014. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items, upcoming events and stories in West Virginia newspapers.
1. THAILAND TO JUNTA: PLEASE CHANGE YOUR SOUNDTRACK
Thai citizens give the thumbs-down to the military’s idea of TV programming during martial law: dour announcements and patriotic hymns.
2. ONE STATE’S RESPONSE TO THE EXECUTION DRUGS SHORTAGE
Tennessee is bringing back the electric chair if prisons can’t get the lethal doses. Legal challenges are expected.
3. DEATHS REPORTED AFTER MORTAR HITS ASSAD ELECTION GATHERING
It’s not clear how many fatalities there are; the Syrian president himself wasn’t present.
4. HOW DETROIT IS COMBATTING CARJACKINGS
Among the measures: Convicted carjackers will get their faces and prison sentences plastered on billboards.
5. DALLAS MAVERICKS OWNER APOLOGIZES TO TRAYVON MARTIN’S FAMILY
Mark Cuban talked about a “black kid in a hoodie” in discussing prejudice. Now, he says he didn’t consider the feelings of the slain Florida teenager’s relatives.
6. “HONG KONG ON THE HUDSON”: A NEW LOOK FOR NYC’S WILD WEST SIDE
A once desolate neighborhood is being transformed in a decade-long project with 17 high-rises — some of them on platforms over Penn Station’s railroad tracks.
7. BATTLE FLAG FROM THE USS TEXAS GOES ON DISPLAY IN HOUSTON
It’s being exhibited at the city’s Museum of Natural Science to commemorate the 70th anniversary of D-Day.
8. CAT LITTER’S POSSIBLE LINK TO RADIATION RELEASE
Officials in New Mexico are trying to figure out if a switch from nonorganic to organic litter caused a chemical reaction leading to the leak.
9. THE LATEST TOOL FOR TRACKING FOOD POISONING: YELP
Health officials in New York City found three unreported outbreaks by reading restaurant reviews on the website.
10. WHERE TO FIND THE BEST BEACH IN AMERICA
Honolulu’s Duke Kahanamoku Beach has been dubbed the best public beach in the nation in an annual survey.