The world 6/9/11

THURSDAY

Sukanya Roy, a 14-year-old eighth grader at Abington Heights Middle School in Pennsylvania, correctly spelled “cymotrichous” to claim the championship in the marathon-length Scripps National Spelling Bee. For besting the competition through a 20-round final, Roy earned a $30,000 cash prize, a $2,500 U.S. savings bond, a complete reference library, a $5,000 scholarship, $2,600 in reference works and other prizes.

The New York Times named Jill Abramson, 57, as its first woman executive editor.

Twenty-four Hmong immigrants were arrested for their connection with a drug trafficking and gambling offenses in a ring that stretched from the Pacific Northwest to Minnesota, Milwaukee and northern Illinois.

FRIDAY

Former Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards was indicted for using nearly $1 million in illegal campaign funds to help cover up an extramarital affair during his 2008 White House bid.

Jack Kevorkian, internationally known as “Dr. Death”, died of natural causes at age 83. The Michigan pathologist became infamous in the 1990s for his campaign for legal assisted suicide. Kevorkian reportedly helped at least 130 people kill themselves.

Police in suburban Kansas City gunned down a large alligator that was reported to be lurking on the bank of a pond. After two bullets bounced off, the officers inspected and found it was made of concrete.

A United Nations report revealed Italy foiled an attempt by North Korea to import a large shipment of tap-dancing shoes, in breach of a ban on the sale of luxury goods.

WEEKEND

Evacuations grew from North Dakota through Nebraska along the Missouri River on Saturday as officials accelerated water releases from near capacity reservoirs swelled by heavy rains and a melting snowpack.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh left Yemen and flew into Saudi Arabia on Sunday for medical treatment, after being struck when rebels assiled the presidential palace with gun and rocket fire.

Spaniard Rafa Nadal claimed his sixth French Open after topping rival Roger Federer 7-5 7-6 5-7 6-1 in Sunday’s final at Roland Garros. The win tied Nadal with Swede Bjorn Borg for most French Open titles.

The U.S. Airways airplane in which pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger made a splash landing dubbed the “Miracle on the Hudson” more than two years ago began a road trip on Saturday to Charlotte, North Carolina, where it will become a permanent exhibit at the Carolinas Aviation Museum.

MONDAY

Five U.S. service members were killed in a rocket attack in Iraq in the worst single toll for American troops in the country in at least two years.

Representative Anthony Weiner, D-NY, admitted he sent a picture of his underwear-wrapped genitals to a college student, contrary to his earlier denials.

A New Mexico man who said he was upset that his girlfriend had an abortion bought a highway billboard and accused her of killing their child. The billboard, in south-central New Mexico, shows 35-year old Greg Fultz holding the outline of a baby in his arms. It reads “This Would Have Been A Picture of My 2-month-Old Baby If the Mother Had Decided to NOT Kill Our Child!” Fultz’s ex-girlfriend is suing him for harassment.

Michael Jackson’s red jacket, worn by the late singer in his 1983 “Thriller” video, is going on the auction block. In 2009, it was inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress for its cultural and historical significance. Julien’s Auctions expects it will fetch $200,000 to $400,000.

TUESDAY

Greenpeace activists dressed as Ken dolls rappelled down the side of Mattel’s headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., to unfurl a banner saying Barbie packaging contributes to rainforest destruction. Six were arrested.

A tip from a psychic prompted Texas authorities to swarm a rural home searching for a nonexistent mass grave and up to 30 bodies, including those of dismembered children. Investigators found nothing.

Briton Mark Wilkinson sunk his new boat on its maiden voyage. He had named the boat Titanic II.

WEDNESDAY

Li Daokui, leader of China’s central bank, warned U.S. politicians are “playing with fire” by contemplating a default on debt payments to force deep government spending cuts. China is the largest foreign creditor to the U.S., holding more than $1 trillion of the country’s $14.5 trillion Treasury debt.

Heavy rain in drought-ravaged regions of China killed 52 and forced 100,000 more to evacuate their homes. Almost 8,000 houses have been destroyed by the floods and thousands of acres of farmland inundated.

German ministers defended their response to the E.coli outbreak that has killed 24 people and sickened more than 2,700 more in 12 countries. While the outbreak has been traced to Hamburg, German officials have yet to trace the source.

Compiled by the Gazette from a variety of sources.