Cheryl K. Chumley
Columns by Cheryl K. Chumley
Toys ‘R’ Us goes gender-neutral in U.K.
Retail toy giant Toys "R" Us announced its United Kingdom stores would stop marketing items by gender and instead adopt the policies pushed by a parent-run campaign that asserts that girls and boys are interested in playing the same games. Published September 6, 2013
Harvard cheaters: 42 percent of freshmen admit cheating
Almost half of Harvard University’s incoming freshmen say they’ve cheated on school work at least once, the student-run newspaper, The Harvard Crimson, found in a survey. Published September 6, 2013
Dallas zoo welcomes baby cheetahs with gift — a puppy
Two baby cheetahs that just joined the animal population at the Dallas Zoo were welcomed aboard with smiles, a new pen and a gift — an 8-week-old black Labrador retriever puppy. Published September 6, 2013
EU tosses out sanctions on Iranian banks with suspected ties to nuclear program
The highest court in the European Union on Friday threw out sanctions against a handful of Iranian businesses — including banks — that were suspected of maintaining ties to the nation's nuclear program. Published September 6, 2013
Author of best-seller that criticized Taliban shot by Taliban outside home
An Indian-born woman who penned one of India's best-selling books, "A Kabuliwala's Bengali Wife," about the challenges of marrying an Afghan man and escaping the clutches of the terrorist group in the 1990s, was shot multiple times outside of her husband's home in Afghanistan. Published September 6, 2013
Rush Limbaugh’s new book: ‘True story on Thanksgiving … no politics in this’
Rush Limbaugh announced Thursday during his radio broadcast that he’s releasing a new book aimed at telling his version of the very American holiday, Thanksgiving, in a way that’s meaningful for children, absent political tampering. Published September 6, 2013
Moderate? Syrian rebels post image of selves by burning U.S. Capitol on Facebook page
A Facebook image of a team of Syrian rebel fighters called the al-Aqsa Islamic Brigades that shows them masked, armed and marching from a burning U.S. Capitol leads intelligence analysts to ponder: Perhaps the anti-Bashar Assad forces are also anti-American. Published September 6, 2013
U.S. drone kills 6 in Pakistan, fueling anger
An American drone killed at least six people in Pakistan early Friday morning, in a northwestern region known as a hideout for Taliban and al Qaeda militants. Published September 6, 2013
Mexico City mulls marijuana clubs as answer to cartel violence
Mexico City council members are mulling whether or not to legalize marijuana sales and smoking — as long as the activity takes place in specially created smoking clubs — as a means of tamping down violence in the nation from drug cartels and traffickers. Published September 5, 2013
Comic Dave Chappelle decries ‘evil,’ ‘white’ hecklers at Hartford show
Stand-up comedian Dave Chappelle said his show in Connecticut on Aug. 29 didn't go over so well because "young, white alcoholics" heckled him to the point that he wished North Korea — should it ever unleash a bomb on America — would hit the Hartford venue. Published September 5, 2013
Wal-Mart fires worker for Facebook post that mocked Muslims
A Wal-Mart employee a New York store was sent packing after his bosses noticed comments he posted on his Facebook page that were deemed derogatory to Muslims. Published September 5, 2013
California college in shock as dean dies in elephant stampede
A 58-year-old dean at the University of California was killed during a luxury safari in Tanzania after he fell in the path of stampeding elephants – 50 of them – and grieving colleagues at the college say they’re shocked, to say the least. Published September 5, 2013
Pope Francis to G-20: Military action in Syria ‘futile’
Pope Francis said in a letter sent to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that the Group of 20 should set aside talks of entering Syria with military force. Published September 5, 2013
For sale: 118-carat diamond, ‘greatest white diamond ever’
A 118-carat flawless-colored diamond has hit the display shelf at Sotheby’s auction house in New York, and interested buyers will have a chance to cast their bids in October. Published September 5, 2013
Californian in Syria on video: ‘What America hates, I love’
A video that shows a heavily bearded, sunglasses-wearing man, reportedly from California but in Syria to help the rebels fight, is making the media rounds — an upsetting commentary on America at a time of high tensions and political crossroads. Published September 5, 2013
Christian baker hounded by gays to close shop: My faith in God ‘has grown’
An Oregon baker with Christian beliefs who was forced to shut down operations after refusing to make a cake for a planned same-sex wedding says her faith in God has not wavered — and in fact, has grown stronger because of the ordeal. Published September 5, 2013
Minneapolis mayor scopes out Chicago for gay marriage business
The mayor of Minneapolis is on a mission, heading on Thursday to Chicago to hit up the city’s notoriously gay neighborhoods and persuade those wishing to marry to go north for their ceremonies. Published September 5, 2013
Terrorists tout new encryption technology that thwarts U.S. intelligence
Terrorists and jihadists say they have a new tool to undercut American and Western intelligence — a mobile encryption software system that operates cell phone-to-cell phone, and works on even those devices that aren't equipped with the technology. Published September 5, 2013
Boeing: China to triple aircraft fleet in next two decades
China's airline industry is blooming, and the nation expects to add three times the number of planes it now has to its ranks over the next 20 years, Boeing Co. spokespeople said Thursday. Published September 5, 2013
Ariel Castro victims stay silent on captor’s suicide
The three Cincinnati women who were held hostage by Ohio's Ariel Castro for about a decade stayed silent on their captor's suicide this week, leaving trial watchers and sympathizers wondering how the news hit them emotionally and whether they considered the news good or bad. Published September 5, 2013
