WWI heroes finally get Medal of Honor

WWI heroes finally get Medal of Honor

WASHINGTON

Declaring it’s never too late to make things right, President Barack Obama posthumously bestowed the Medal of Honor on two World War I veterans whose heroic acts nearly 100 years ago went unrecognized in an age of discrimination.

In a tearful, joyful East Room ceremony recalling the battlefield triumphs as well as the prejudices of 20th century America, Sgt. William Shemin and Pvt. Henry Johnson were recognized with the nation’s highest military decoration for saving their comrades on French front lines. Shemin was Jewish, and Johnson was black.

Obama applauded the tireless efforts of their advocates, who led Congress to pass an exemption from Medal of Honor rules specifying that heroic actions have to have taken place within five years to be considered.

Health care sign-up goal has been met

WASHINGTON

More than 10 million people have signed up for private health insurance this year under President Barack Obama’s law, the administration said Tuesday. That puts the nation finally within reach of coverage for all, but it may not last.

The report from the Department of Health and Human Services comes as dozens of insurers are proposing double-digit premium hikes for next year, raising concerns about future affordability. And the Supreme Court is weighing the legality of subsidized premiums for millions of consumers in more than 30 states. A decision is due around the end of the month.

Woman accused of stealing headstones

ALUM CREEK, W.VA.

A South Charleston woman has been accused of stealing headstones from a family’s graveyard and using them to decorate her driveway and line her burn pit.

Multiple media outlets report 54-year-old Penny Snodgrass was arrested after Bobby Angel of South Charleston accused Snodgrass of taking his family’s headstones from Brounland Cemetery in Alum Creek.

Troopers from the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office drove up Snodgrass’ driveway and say they saw the headstones being used to surround an active fire pit.

Deputies say Snodgrass admitted that she took the headstones and burned large amounts of trash on her property. She was charged last week with grand larceny, removal of grave markers and various litter charges. Snodgrass is being held on a $75,000 bond.

Report of rampant airline-security failures isn’t a first

WASHINGTON

Think you’re safe on a plane? Federal undercover investigators who sneaked prohibited items with alarming ease past Homeland Security Department airport screeners also have smuggled simulated bombs and weapons aboard planes during tests as far back as September 2002, U.S. audits show.

Results of the latest undercover test are classified, but members of Congress said mock explosives, weapons and other prohibited items went unnoticed in 67 out of 70 tries at Transportation Security Administration airport checkpoints.

Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who helped establish TSA in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2011, terrorist attacks and has since become a vocal critic of the agency, said the latest audit results are anything but a surprise.

“I’ve seen far worse. The results I’ve gotten back are even worse than what you see being released here,” Mica said, describing other classified reports that he has ordered or reviewed.

Associated Press