 | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | |  | |  Japan's Mafia to the Rescue
Even Japan's infamous mafia groups are helping out with the relief efforts and showing a strain of civic duty. Hours after the first shock waves hit, two of the largest crime groups went into action, opening their offices to those stranded in Tokyo, and shipping food, water, and blankets to the devastated areas in two-ton trucks and whatever vehicles they could get moving. The day after the earthquake the Inagawa-kai (the third largest organized crime group in Japan which was founded in 1948) sent twenty-five four-ton trucks filled with paper diapers, instant ramen, batteries, flashlights, drinks, and the essentials of daily life to the Tohoku region. The Daily Beast's Jake Adelstein reports on why the police don't want you to know about the role of the unlikely heroes.
Read it at The Daily Beast
|  |  | |  Gaddafi Forces Reach Benghazi
Even as President Obama endorsed military action against Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan strongman's forces began attacking Benghazi, the heart of the rebellion. After Gaddafi reneged on his ceasefire, his troops bombarded the city with artillery and invaded with tanks, sources in Benghazi say. On the outskirts, a fighter jet was shot down in flames. In an announcement at the White House, Obama said the U.S. would take military action against Libya if there wasn't an immediate ceasefire. However, he specified that there would be no ground invasion by the U.S., which would take a supporting role. A U.S. official said that the U.S. might take the lead in destroying Libya's air defenses at the beginning of operations. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Paris to attend a meeting of world leaders Saturday to discuss military action.
Read it at BBC News
| |  | |  Radiation Found in Milk, Spinach
Japan's health ministry says they've found abnormal levels of radiation in milk and spinach near the overheating nuclear plant. The radioactive spinach was grown 75 miles from the Fukushima plant, while the milk was from a town about 30 miles away. Both contained more iodine-131 than the legal limit, but health officials said it wasn't enough to have an immediate effect on human health. The minister said that if you drank the milk every day for a year, the effect would be the same as one CT scan. There may be some good news on the horizon: Japanese officials say engineers have attached a power cable to the outside of the stricken No. 3 reactor and hope electricity will begin flowing by Sunday. Attempts to spray the plant with water seem to be having some effect, and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said, "The situation there is stabilizing somewhat."
Read it at The Wall Street Journal
| |  | |  U.S. Fears Gaddafi Terror Attacks
President Obama's top counterterrorism official warned Friday that Col. Muammar Gaddafi may lash out with a new series of Libyan-backed terrorist attacks. When asked if the Libyan leader would open a new terrorism front, John O. Brennan responded, "Gaddafi has the penchant to do things of a very concerning nature. We have to anticipate and be prepared for things he might try to do to flout the will of the international community." Of particular concern, according to Brennan, is Libya's stockpile of mustard gas. He also revealed that U.S. spy services have been working with their Arab counterparts in recent weeks to disrupt a series of terrorist plots in those countries, and that many previously jailed terrorism suspects or sympathizers had been "rounded up and brought back." Responding on Friday to U.N. intervention, Gaddafi called international rebukes "blatant colonialism" and warned of "serious consequences."
Read it at The New York Times
| |  | |  Warren Christopher, Clinton's Secretary of State, Dies
Warren Christopher, the longtime political operative who served as secretary of State during Bill Clinton's first term, died Friday in Los Angeles from complications of bladder and kidney cancer. He was 85. Christopher was born in North Dakota and moved to his longtime home, Los Angeles, at a young age. In World War II, he served as ensign in the naval reserve on an oil tanker in the Pacific—although later in life as a diplomat, Christopher was often reluctant to use force. As deputy secretary of State, Christopher became the chief negotiator with Iran for the release of 52 American hostages. After a stint as secretary of State in Clinton's first term, Christopher served as the overseer for the Florida election recount in 2000 before the Supreme Court stepped in and took over control.
Read it at The New York Times
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SAT Head Defends Reality-TV Question
by Laurence Bunin | | An essay prompt on this year's test sparked an uproar by asking students to write about the ethics of reality TV. But don't worry, says College Board chief Lawrence Bunin—Snooki is not required reading. |  | Libya: Do No-Fly Zones Work?
by Rob Verger
Rebels and diplomats alike cheered when the U.N. voted this week to patrol Libya's skies—but will the resolution help squelch an escalating conflict? Rob Verger polls five foreign policy experts. Plus, Michael O'Hanlon on the logistics of intervening in Libya. | | March 19: The Week in Viral Videos
by The Daily Beast Video
From Rebecca Black's so-bad-it's-good "Friday" to a guilty dog and the view of Japan's tsunami from inside Sendai airport, watch the buzziest viral videos of the week. |  |  | |  | | |
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