UPDATED: 10:45 AM EST
In a stunning video announcement Wesdnesday, Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley said that he would calling a special session of the state legislature for the purpose of bringing about a lottery in the Yellowhammer State.
In the five minute video announcement of the special session, Bentley referred to Alabama’s chronic budget shortfall as a “crisis” and called on the legislature to move to pass legislation that would allow for a statewide referendum.
Bentley said that the proposed lottery would generate $225 million annually for the state.
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American Student Among Dead In Paris Terror Attacks
An American college student was killed in the terror attacks that have left at least 129 dead in Paris and shocked the world.
Nohemi Gonzalez, a 23 year old junior at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) was killed at a restaurant during the attack according to the college she attended.
“I’m deeply saddened by the news of the passing of Long Beach State University student Nohemi Gonzalez. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends during this sad time,” (CSULB) President Jane Close Conoley said. “Our university stands with our nearly eighty foreign exchange students from France as they struggle with this tragedy. We will extend all support necessary to comfort them. We will also extend support to all students, faculty and staff who are in need.”
Gonzalez was from El Monte, Calif., and was studying design.
According to a press release from CSULB Gonzalez was in Paris attending Strate College of Design during a semester abroad program.
CSULB plans to hold a vigil for Gonzalez 4 pm PST.
Gonzalez was reportedly a “kind, thoughtful, generous and talented student, dear to all who knew her,” Michael LaForte, a lecturer in CSULB’s department of design, wrote on Facebook according to the Los Angeles Times. “We grieve for her today and give our hearts to her grieving family and boyfriend.”
Cover Photo Credit: Facebook
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The Infamous Borgia Family Is Still Around And More Important Than You May Think
By Nate Nkumbu
Popes by natures are supposed to be holy men, ordained by God and the church to lead the Catholic faith.
Not every pope however follows those church rules.
One pope that was infamous for breaking rules was Pope Alexander VI.
Born Roderic Borgia, Pope Alexander VI was the leader of the papacy from 1492 to his death in 1503.
A controversial pope who had fathered children with many mistresses, Alexander VI’s name is now a stand in for all of the vice and nepotism that was once associated with the Catholic church.
He embraced the temporal role of the church and his family wielded real power in the affairs of war and politics.
Not exactly a Pope Peter lookalike.
One of Rome’s few memorials of the first Borgia pope, Calixtus III, from the tail end of the fifteenth century. Photo Credit: Anthony Majanlahti/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
According to Lawrence Cunningham, a Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, while Alexander VI might have been a bad Pope to the Catholic Church, he was beloved and respected by people during his time.
“He was great patronage of the arts during the renaissance and commissioned the likes of Michelangelo and Raphael to work for the vatican and for him,” Cunningham said in an interview with RISE NEWS. “He was important to the new world as he corresponded with the Spanish crown about confirming the discovery.”
Interestingly enough, while often thought as a family only found in a history book, the Borgia’s are still around today.
Borgia’s children that he sired with his mistresses left a legacy of their own.
One of his children’s descendants, Rodrigo Borja Cevallos became president of Ecuador in 1988 at a time when Ecuador was suffering one it’s worst economic crisis.
There was not much Cevallos could do to fix the situation and he was ousted within four years.
But still. How cool is that?
The Borgia family legacy isn’t just held to a descendant becoming president of Ecuador.
Cunningham said that his direct line had influenced The Renaissance and the rise of political realism in a major way.
“Pope Alexander’s daughter Lucrezia would become source for Machiavelli’s The Prince,” Cunningham said. “The Borgia family would have people become dukes, lords and so on. So Pope Alexander VI’s influence still exists to this day.”
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
Cover Photo Credit: Sharat Ganapati/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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Do The American People Like Liars?
By Alex Austin
Every four years, Americans go to the polls to decide who will be the leader of the free world. The process to get there is long, arduous, and full of talking points.
These talking points always have something in common, no matter which election cycle you look at. Partisan news outlets mud-slinging candidates they don’t agree with, while at the same time propping up those they do. Political ‘analysts’ who throw around buzzwords as if there was a bargain sale on them. And the collective populace left to try to sort out what is fact, what is fiction, and what is just plain ridiculous.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, the American people literally have over a year to make their decisions. The candidates for this particular cycle began announcing they would run in April of this year, and the first primary is February 1, 2016. That is a long time. A time where many things will be said, argued, and debated.
However, this length of time is good for one reason: it allows plenty of time for candidates to separate themselves, to show why they are different (read: better) than their peers. This desire for separation, to say and do things that each candidate thinks will get them votes, is both the most interesting, and the most unintentionally hilarious, part of the process.
This cycle, more than any other I can recall, has the most clickbait-worthy headlines.
If you thought that eight years-worth of Republicans asking whether President Obama is an American (he is) or a Christian (he is) was a lot of political toxin to swallow, then the sheer tonnage present in this cycle, most of it coming from those same questioning Republicans, may just be beyond your comprehension.
This woman has degrees from Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. But that doesn’t mean she’s smart enough not to lie in this information age.
Interestingly, unlike the above examples concerning President Obama, where lies were spread to make a candidate look bad, this cycle has been home to a plethora of candidates who are lying to make themselves look better.
What’s even more interesting is that the majority of these incidents are coming from people with no political background. Instead, they are taking advantage of the partisan, paranoid, nature of unsure voters to buoy their campaigns.
Let’s begin with the most famous Republican candidate: Donald Trump.
Trump has had a hand in politics for decades, being a large contributor to campaigns from Ronald Reagan to Mitt Romney (and some Democrats along the way).
However, it seems that he has learned nothing about how to conduct an interview in all that time, as every time the man sits down, he seems to say something so jaw-dropping, so unbelievable, that you would think the video you’re watching was cropped together.
For example, his infamous rant on Mexican immigrants drew heavy backlash, including his firing from NBC. Many years, this would mark the end of a campaign, where people turn on you so heavily that nothing you can say can dig you out of the whole you have put yourself in.
However, in this instance, not only was Trump praised by fellow candidate Ted Cruz, but he is currently the front-runner. What does that say about the people voting for him? I’ll leave that unanswered.
Next, I will draw your attention to Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard. This woman has degrees from Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. But that doesn’t mean she’s smart enough not to lie in this information age.
As the old saying goes, there’s no such thing as bad publicity, and these three candidates along with their peers quite simply take this to heart.
During the September 16 Republican Debate, Fiorina claimed there was footage of a Planned Parenthood clinic killing, and harvesting the organs of, a still-alive fetus. However, within days, fact checkers tore her allegations to shreds. However, just like with Trump, after these comments, her poll numbers improved.
Finally, there is Dr. Ben Carson, a retired pediatric neurosurgeon. Unlike the two candidates I have already highlighted, the questions concerning Dr. Carson have less to do with his positions, and more with his personal history.
His 1990 autobiography Gifted Hands has come under a lot of scrutiny, and for a good reason: most of it is fabricated. From claiming to be raised dirt-poor, to overcoming his anger issues, to being offered a scholarship to West Point, all of it is false.
What did Dr. Carson do in light of these facts? He accused the media of conducting a ‘witch hunt’, which prompted his supports to give donate $3.5 million to his campaign in a week.
So the question remains: why do candidates feel the need to make such allegations and accusations in bad faith? Well, it’s quite simple.
Earlier in this piece, I jabbed analysts who throw around buzzwords like candy in a Christmas parade. As the old saying goes, there’s no such thing as bad publicity, and these three candidates along with their peers quite simply take this to heart.
They know that the American public will take many things at face-value. They know that fighting against the ‘liberal media’ will gain them support and money. And they know that a million people shouting lies will always be louder than a million shouting truths.
Cover Photo Credit: DonkeyHotey/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
This piece is the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Rise News.
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