BREAKING: The Chicago Tribune is reporting that twelve people, including a three-year-old child, have been injured in a shooting at a basketball court on the city’s south side. Nine of the injured are in a critical condition.
According to a source, the three-year-old suffered a gunshot wound to the face.
Police do not yet have the gunman in custody.
The is the second gun-related massacre the country has seen this week, following the killing of 12 people in a Washington DC Navy Yard earlier this year.
1. The ACT Legislative Assembly has introduced legislation to make gay marriage legal for the first time in Australia. The ACT’s Marriage Equality Bill will now be debated and is expected to be passed in October.
The Bill received a standing ovation from the public gallery when it was tabled;
it represents a change that is long overdue. However, Prime Minister Tony Abbott has already indicated that there might be a federal veto of the legislation, if it is successfully passed by the assembly.
Tony Abbott said he would confer with Attorney-General George Brandis to find out “precisely how far the ACT can go on this.” “As you know, under the Constitution the Commonwealth has responsibility for marriage and (Senator Brandis) will be seeking advice on precisely how far that extends,” the Prime Minister said.
2. New figures from the Bureau of Statistics show that Australia has recorded its largest quarterly fall in regards to employment figures in over 13 years. The largest decline was in the retail sector, where there has been no growth in employment for the past three years. The ABS says that 26,500 jobs disappeared in the lead up to August.
3. According to the ABC, a new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that land and sea temperatures will continue to rise, but an increase of the planet heating by more than 4 degrees is unlikely this century. However, sea level are still expected to increase by a metre before the end of the century.
4. A group of British scientists have declared that they’ve discovered proof of extraterrestrial life. They haven’t found any flying saucers or anything resembling ET but they have found small biological organisms that they are 95 per cent sure do not originate from earth. The discovery was made through sending a balloon 27 kilometres into space.
5. A morbidly obese toddler in Saudi Arabia has become the youngest ever person to have bariatric surgery – where a portion of the stomach is removed to make it smaller.
The two-year-old had seen a number of doctors as his weight escalated, but when he reached 33kg they made the decision to perform surgery, as he was suffering from sleep apnea and bowed legs.
6. A five-month-old baby has died in Spain after its mother reportedly placed him on a luggage carousel at an airport.
Details about the incident are sketchy, but we do know the US mother placed the baby on what appeared to be a stationary baggage belt that (unknown to her) is set into motion by weight.
After the baby was whisked away and became tangled in the rollers, airport staff tried to revive him but were unsuccessful.
7. West Australian Premier Colin Barnett has suggested Prime Minister Tony Abbott should consider raising the GST.
Speaking yesterday, Mr Barnett said: “Unfortunately one of the tough jobs Tony Abbott is going to have is to step up to the plate and take some leadership on the federation and front and centre of that will be the GST issue… I’m sure he doesn’t want to do that, but I don’t think he has much choice.” Mr Barnett said a rise in GST was needed to fund basic services like health and education.
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Top Comments
I found the bariatric surgery on the toddler to be astounding. The toddler doesn't have an 'emotional' attachment to food, or an inability to stay away from the fridge. His parents are the ones who have the power to stop and reverse his weight gain. Bariatric surgery on a baby just seems absolutely out of this world.
Honestly, Abbott is out of his mind. He doesnt give a toss about equal rights or the environment. Look what he is doing on the Great Barrier Reef. We'll look back on now and regret his time in office. Im not a proud Australian at the moment.