What you need to know about Tuesday"s primary election

Google Doodle US Elections 2014 - Where do I vote?

.(Photo: Seth Perlman/AP)

If going to the polls in early June feels a little strange, that"s OK -- it is.

North Carolina voters chose nominees for most offices that will be on the November ballot in primaries held March 15. The state usually holds primaries for federal and state offices in early May, but the General Assembly moved the date in hopes of making North Carolina more important in the presidential nomination contests.

However, two court decisions meant primaries for state Supreme Court and U.S. House could not be held until Tuesday. One struck down an attempt by the legislature to change the way Supreme Court justices are elected, the other found the state"s previous district lines for U.S. House seats unconstitutional. The legislature had to redraw the districts.

The timing of the court cases meant the primary votes could not be held March 15, so North Carolinians get to add to their collection of "I voted" stickers on Tuesday.

The other difference in Tuesday"s primary is that nearly 28,000 Buncombe County voters now live in a different congressional district than they did two years ago. Read on for more information about that and other aspects ofTuesday"s voting.

Question: Who gets to vote?

Answer: All registered voters can choose among the four candidates for Supreme Court.

Republicans and unaffiliated voters in the 10th Congressional District can choose among four candidates for the GOP nomination. Democrats and unaffiliated voters in the 11th District can vote in the Democratic primary there, where two candidates are running.

Q: Do unaffiliated voters have to vote in the same party"s primary as in March?

A: No. That rule only applies when there is a primary and then a runoff primary.

Q: Will there be a runoff after Tuesday"s primary?

A: No. The top two vote-getters among the candidates for Supreme Court justice will be on the general election ballot in November.Whichever U.S. House candidates get the most votes gettheir party"s nominations.

Q: Have the boundaries of the congressional districts changed?

A: Yes. In Buncombe County alone, 21,520 voters who used to be in the 11th District are now in the 10th, and 6,428 voters who used to be in the 11th are now in the 10th, according to county Elections Supervisor Trena Parker.The legislature shifted Avery County from the 11th District to the 5th.

Precincts that moved from the 10th to the 11th District include several on the western side of West Asheville, a few on the northern side of North Asheville, Woodfin and Biltmore Forest. Three precincts on the east side of Hendersonville Road in the Arden-Skyland areathat were in the 11th are now in the 10th.

The 10th District comprises Polk, Rutherford, Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties, almost all of Catawba County, a tiny slice of Iredell County and most of Asheville and the southeastern quadrant of Buncombe County. The district line cuts through West and North Asheville with those living in neighborhoods closer to downtown in the 10th and those farther away in the 11th.

The 11th District stretches from east of Lenoir to west of Murphy. It includes Caldwell, Burke, McDowell, Mitchell and Yancey counties in the foothills and northern mountains; Madison and Henderson counties and the portion of Buncombe not in the 10th and all counties in the state west of there.

The Buncombe County Board of Elections sent postcards to voters whose congressional district changed this year.

Q: I"m still confused. How can I find out which congressional district I"m in before I vote?

A: The Buncombeelections boardwebsite, part of www.buncombecounty.org, has maps of the new districts.

The State Board of Elections website, www.ncsbe.gov, has a section where voters can findtheir registration and district information. Look for a link to "Voter/Absentee Lookup."

Or, you can call the county board at (828)250-4200. They might not beas busy as usual just before an election.

Q: Why do you say that?

A: As of midday Friday, only 1,139 people in Buncombe County had cast ballots during the early voting period, Parker said. That"s in contrast to nearly 32,000 early ballots cast for the March 15 primary in the county.

"My guess is (turnout) is going to be extremely low," she said.

Q: Where do I vote?

A: The same place as usual, unless you live in one of three Buncombe precincts. Because of conflicting events at the usual voting sites, voters there will go to the polling place of a nearby precinct.

--Those who usually vote at Arden First Baptist Church will instead vote at Skyland Fire Department, 9 Miller Road in Skyland.

--Montreat voters will vote at Black Mountain Elementary, 100 Flat Creek Road.

--Those who usually vote at Charles Bell ElementarySchool in East Asheville will instead vote at Haw Creek Elementary, 21 Trinity Chapel Road.

Q: When will polls be open?

A: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

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Source: http://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2016/06/04/what-you-need-know-tuesdays-primary-election/85375172/

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Primary elections 2016: today"s results and poll closing times

Donald Trump Interview Hannity Fox News Super Tuesday WATCH LIVE Hillary Clinton Victory Speech

After four months, today is the final significant day of voting in the presidential primaries even though, according to multiple media outlets,Hillary Clinton has already wrapped up the Democratic nomination.Bernie Sanders remains in the race and hasn"t yet conceded.

Six states went to the polls on the Democratic side, with a total of 694 delegates at stake. They are:

1) California(475 delegates):Polls have closed, but a winner has not yet been called.

2) New Jersey(126 delegates):Hillary Clintonhas been called the winner.

3) New Mexico(34 delegates): Hillary Clinton has been called the winner.

4) Montana(21 delegates): Polls have closed, but the race has not yet been called.

5) South Dakota(20 delegates): Hillary Clinton has been called the winner.

6) North Dakota(18 delegates): Bernie Sanders has been called the winner.

And technically there"s one more contest after this the District of Columbia Democratic primary is a week from today, on June 14.

Now, the polls in California are still being counted. But the question of who wins the state is a mostly symbolic one, without too much implication for the delegate count.

That"s because Clinton goes into tonight"s contests with a sizable lead in pledged delegates. And since Democrats allot all their primary and caucus delegates proportionally, Sanders won"t be able to overcome Clinton"s existing pledged delegate lead unless he wins incredible landslide victories across the board tonight which he hasn"t done so far, far from it.

Furthermore, when superdelegate endorsements are taken into account, Clinton already has enough delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, according to tallies by the Associated Press and NBC News so wins tonight would only cement that status.

The state of the Democratic race

The Democratic delegate count can get a bit complicated, because in addition to the party"s 4,051 pledged delegates awarded in primary and caucus voting, there are 714 superdelegates party figures who are free to support whichever candidate they want. So there are three main ways to determine who wins (plus an extra tally that is basically meaningless but could be used as a good talking point).

1) Count both pledged delegates and superdelegates. This is the simplest way of tallying things up, incorporating both pledged delegates and the superdelegates who have publicly made endorsements so far. This is also the method the convention will use to determine the nominee, so it"s obviously quite important.

The magic number for an outright delegate majority is 2,383, and according to the Associated Press and NBC News, Clinton has already passed it. Sanders, by contrast, is more than 800 delegates away from it, which is very far away indeed.

2) Look at pledged delegates alone and see who has the majority. There"s also some justification for excluding the superdelegates from the tally entirely for looking just at which candidate gets more pledged delegates, to get a better sense of "the will of the people." (After all, Democratic superdelegates have never dethroned the leader in pledged delegates.)

The magic number for a pledged delegate majority is 2,026 so Clinton is 214 delegates away from this, and Sanders is 501 away. (Clinton needs just 30 percent of tonight"s pledged delegates to reach this threshold, but Sanders needs 70 percent an incredibly difficult standard to meet, given Democrats" proportional delegate allocation rules.)

3) Count pledged delegates but assume the superdelegates are still up for grabs. As Sanders has fallen further behind, he"s made the case for a different metric. He says that unless one candidate wins an outright delegate majority (2,383) in pledged delegates alone, the outcome will be decided by the 714 superdelegates.

Now, the vast majority of these superdelegates have already endorsed (mostly for Clinton) but they are still perfectly free to change their minds. So, according to Sanders, we should just consider all the superdelegates neutral and view this scenario as a "contested convention."

This seems a lot like an effort by Sanders to move the goalposts. In past nomination contests, media outlets and leading party figures have generally used the first two metrics to determine the winner. And since Democrats have so many superdelegates and those proportional rules for regular delegates, it"s difficult for anyone to win an outright majority of pledged delegates in a race that stays competitive all the way through. (Barack Obama fell well short of doing so in 2008 but was declared the presumptive nominee anyway.)

4) Count who won more actual votes nationwide. Finally, though the Democratic nomination is in the end decided by delegates, it is possible to ditch all this delegate stuff and look only at which candidate won the most votes overall the national popular vote.

Going into today"s voting, Clinton is clearly ahead by this metric she"s gotten 13.3 million votes to Sanders"s 10.3 million, according to the Green Papers. Now, this isn"t a perfect metric either, because some states hold lower-turnout caucuses and some don"t even release their vote totals. But FiveThirtyEight has convincingly argued that the metric doesn"t significantly hurt Sanders and probably even helps him.

The big question is what Sanders does next Justin Sullivan / Getty

When the dust settles tonight, it appears very likely that Clinton will have won an outright delegate majority, a majority of pledged delegates, and the national popular vote. However, she will fall short of the metric Sanders has recently laid out like Obama in 2008, she won"t win an outright delegate majority with pledged delegates alone.

Sanders will then have a choice to make. In recent days, the Vermont senator has maintained that if this is the outcome, he"ll stay in the race until the convention and spend the next month and a half lobbying superdelegates to abandon Clinton and support him instead. And his campaign spokesperson Michael Briggs reiterated that sentiment last night, saying in a statement, "Our job from now until the convention is to convince those superdelegates that Bernie is by far the strongest candidate against Donald Trump."

This sounds a bit bizarre. It would mean that in effect, Sanders would be lobbying a small group of party elites to overturn the "will of the people" despite failing to win a majority of pledged delegates or votes nationwide. Furthermore, such an effort seems vanishingly unlikely to succeed, given superdelegates" overwhelming support for Clinton so far (barring some seismic event like an indictment). Not a single superdelegate has switched from Clinton to Sanders yet.

There is reason to be skeptical of Sanders"s pronouncements, though. Presidential candidates have often argued that they"ll fight all the way until the convention, only to reverse course when defeat is finally unmistakable. And Matt Yglesias argues that Sanders will likely do the same.

Whatever Sanders"s intentions, the Democratic Party is eager for Hillary Clinton to move on to the general election and focus on taking on Donald Trump. Indeed, according to recent reports from the New York Times and CNN, several key Democratic figures who have remained neutral so far, like President Obama, Vice President Biden, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, will likely endorse Clinton in the coming days, as an effort to signal to Sanders that it"s time to throw in the towel.

Why aren"t all the primaries on the same day?

Source: http://www.vox.com/2016/6/7/11867910/california-primary-2016-polls-closing-results-clinton-sanders

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Royal Palm aims to raise awareness about invasive fish species

THE SHALLOWS - Official Trailer (HD)

Take a walk along one of Royal Palm Beachs many canals and you never know what you might see.

During a recent council meeting, Councilman David Swift showed a PowerPoint presentation detailing the growing number of exotic fish that have begun popping in the villages canal system. Exotic fish that are pretty, unique looking and, in some cases, potentially harmful to the environment in which they dont belong.

The Mayan cichlid (shown here) is one of the invasive fish species that have found their way into the canal system in Royal Palm Beach and elsewhere in the county.

I know some of the lakes around here have a fairly large population of clown knifefish and now there are quite a few of them in the canals here, Swift said. They are predatory and they eat minows. I think it takes about 10 pounds of forage to produce one pound of fish. So, if we have a clown knifefish that weighs 10 pounds, that means they are consuming about 100 pounds of forage throughout their lives. What is that forage? Native fish? Bluegills? Bass? Other exotics? To get a fish that big, they have to be eating other fish in our canal in order to exist.

Swift said some of these fish, like the walking catfish and the sailfin catfish, have been around the village for 30 years or more. But its the new ones like the Mayan cichlids, the knifefish and the snakeheads which have begun popping up in the past 10 years or so.

The question is what to do with them?

Photo courtesy of FWC

The clown knifefish is one of the invasive fish species that have found their way into the canal system in Royal Palm Beach and elsewhere in the county.PHOTO: Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission

Being an avid fisherman, Swift said the dilemma is even tougher.

The knifefish especially, you can see them out there, they kind of roll like a tarpon, Swift said. And they jump like a tarpon when you hook them. To be honest, theyre kind of a hoot to catch. But when you catch them, now what? Do I throw it back? Probably not. But, then again, theyre really fun to catch.

What to do with an exotic when you catch it is one of the messages Swift was trying to get out to the community. He invited Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) fisheries biologist Kelly Gestring out to the village to take some samples and see what exotics they could identify. Gestrings samples didnt turn up very much, but they were very limited by shallow water and could only access a small portion of the canals.

Gestring said the introduction of exotics to local ponds and canals is a trend much like the green pythons and ball pythons in the Everglades that is more and more disturbing. And harmful.

What weve witnessed the past couple of years is what I call bucket biology, Gestring said. An angler catches a fish and then illegally transports it to a new spot. Im quite sure that is what has happened here. The only way they could have gotten there is by illegally releasing them.

Swift and Gestring are asking anglers who catch an exotic species to take a picture and then call the FWC biologist with the information. A photo, Gestring said, is the best way to positively identify the fish. After that, its up to the angler what to do with the fish, though Gestring made sure to stress how tasty a lot of the exotics are.

We encourage people not to release the exotics back into the water, Gestring said. Catch, keep and eat is a very good way to help control the population of these kinds of species.

In the meantime, be on the lookout for a brightly colored fish swimming in the shallows, or maybe a shiny one rolling in the middle of the canal. Or, in the case of the snakehead, a toothy, long skinny fish that may see you before you see it.

I saw two of them kind of shepherding a whole school of 3- to 4-inch babies down the shoreline, Swift said. And I dont know if they have binocular vision or what they can see, but the one stopped and was looking right at me. Kind of like it was sizing me up. Ive never had that happen with a fish before.

What: Non-native fish species that have been introduced into the Royal Palm Beach canal system, most likely by anglers catching and then relocating the fish.

Types of exotics: For many years, walking catfish and sailfin catfish have lived quietly in the canal system. During the past decade or so, Mayan cichlids, bullseye snakeheads and clown knifefish have formed a population.

What to do if you catch one: There is no hard and fast rule regarding exotic species. There is no bag or slot limit. Anglers are encouraged to photograph the fish and call FWC biologist Kelly Gestring at 561-292-6007 or email him at kelly.gestring@myfwc.com. Many of these species are edible and very tasty.

Source: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/local/royal-palm-aims-to-raise-awareness-about-invasive-/nrbxk/

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Bobby Brown 20/20 Interview 2016 Live Stream: How to Watch it Online

Bobby Brown Opens Up About Daughter"s Death in Special "20/20" Interview

(ABC/ Rick Rowell)

Tonight at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC airs the long-awaited 20/20 interview with Bobby Brown. Conducted by Robin Roberts, Brown finally sits down to talk about his heartache in losing his ex-wife and daughter. He also reveals his disgust and upset towards his late daughters fiance Nick Gordon. Brown will not even utter Gordons name. Some of what is covered in tonights interview is included in Browns memoir Every Little Step: My Story. The memoir is set to be released June 13, 2016, but you can order it on Amazon by clicking here. If you are hoping to watch the special tonight, get the details on how to watch the show online below.

If You Dont Have Access to a Cable or Satellite Subscription [Select Markets Only]On the Web:

Viewers in certain United States TV markets can watch the interview through Sling TV, an online streaming service that provides access to select channels for a monthly fee, but offers a free 7-day trial that will allow you to watch the show for free if you sign up. Slings Broadcast Extra package, which includes ABC, is available in the Chicago, Fresno-Visalia, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham and San Francisco TV markets.

If you sign up, youll have the option to select one of two basic packages for $20 per month once the free trial ends. (You can select both if you want, but selecting at least one is mandatory.) The Broadcast Extra package, which you can add after youve created your account, costs an extra $5. Again: If youre in one of the TV markets listed above and want to watch the show for free, you can do so with Slings free 7-day trial.

Heres how to sign up:

1. Click here to create a Sling account.

2. Select either the Best of Live TV package or the Best of Live TV Beta package, each of which costs $20 per month after your free trial is over.

3. Enter your billing information and create an account. Again: You will not be charged until after youve completed the free 7-day trial.

4. Once youve created your account, click on the icon next to the sign out button in the top-right corner of your screen. Once youve clicked on the icon, click the blue change subscription link.

5. Click on Best of Live TV Extras, then scroll down to the Broadcast Extra add-on and click add.

6. Download the Sling app on your computer, and begin watching the show.

With an App:

If you sign up for the free Sling trial and are in the Chicago, Fresno-Visalia, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham or San Francisco TV market, you can watch the special Sling app, which you can download for free in the App store or the Google Play store. Theres also a Sling app for Roku, Chromecast, Nexus player, ZTE and XBox One. Click here for a full list of compatible devices.

The services Best of Live TV package and Best of Live TV beta package each cost $20 a month, and the Broadcast Extra add-on costs an additional $5 per month. But if youre looking for a way to watch the Oscars for free, you can do so with Slings free 7-day trial.Heres how to sign up:

1. Click here to create a Sling account.

2. Select the Best of Live TV package or the Best of Live TV beta package.

3. Enter your billing information and create an account. Again: You will not be charged until after youve completed the free 7-day trial.

4. Once youve created your account, click on the icon next to the sign out button in the top-right corner of your screen. Once youve clicked on the icon, click the blue change subscription link.

5. Click on Best of Live TV Extras, then scroll down to the Broadcast Extra add-on and click add.

6. Download the Sling app in the App store or the Google Play store.

If You Have Access to a Cable or Satellite Subscription [Select Markets Only]On the Web:

You can stream the special on the ABC website here at abc.go.com/watch-live. Youll be prompted to select a cable or satellite TV provider and enter your account information.

The live stream is only available in these markets: Chicago, Fresno, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham, and San Francisco.

With an App:

You can also stream the interview live using the WATCH ABC app. Again, you will need access to a cable or satellite provider account and will be prompted to enter your account info. The live broadcast is only available in these markets: Chicago, Fresno, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham and San Francisco.

The Watch ABC app is available for Apple (iOS), Apple TV, Android, Chromecast, Xbox 360 and Fire Tablet.

Source: http://heavy.com/entertainment/2016/06/bobby-brown-interview-2020-live-stream-watch-online-abc-how-to-2016-special/

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Warriors, Cavaliers both know The Finals can turn quickly

Sean Rooks, former Arizona Basketball great, dies at 46

CLEVELAND (AP) Golden State has won the first two games of the NBA Finals, both of those wins coming by double figures and with a few dominant stretches of basketball in there.

Strange as this sounds, that has the Warriors feeling a bit uneasy.

The champions know exactly how fast a series can change, having just pulled off a mathematically improbable comeback from 3-1 down against Oklahoma City in the Western Conference finals. And even with the odds now stacked high against Cleveland in these NBA Finals, the Warriors say they cannot fall into the trap of thinking this series that resumes with Game 3 on Wednesday night is already over.

Thats a great analogy, one that weve already used, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday. It doesnt matter what the scores are, doesnt matter if you win by 25 or lose by 25, its one game in the series. And we got blown out twice in a row in OKC, down 3-1, and we were able to come back. We know were playing against a great team. Theyre coming home. They can change the momentum around with just one win.

Cleveland hopes hes right.

The Cavs might be without concussed Kevin Love for Game 3, but they are 7-0 at home in these playoffs winning by an average of 20.9 points.

Its a do-or-die game for us, Cavaliers forward LeBron James said. We cant afford to go down 3-0 to any team, especially a team thats 73-9 in the regular season and playing the type of basketball theyre playing.

When the Warriors were on the brink of elimination against the Thunder, history suggested that they had a 3.9 percent chance to win the series 232 previous NBA teams were down 3-1 in a best-of-seven, and only nine won.

Compared to that, Clevelands chances look fabulous.

Were not in that bad of shape as they were 3-1 is worse than 2-0, Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said. And they came back and took it one game at a time, like we have to do.

Teams that have fallen behind 2-0 in the NBA Finals have rallied to win 9.7 percent of the time, with three of them getting it done in 31 past opportunities. The 1969 Boston Celtics, 1977 Portland Trail Blazers and 2006 Miami Heat all lost the first two games of the finals on the road before winning the title the Celtics doing so in seven games, the Blazers and Heat getting it done in six.

History, Lue said, is something thats made to be broken.

Despite their predicament, the Cavaliers certainly seemed confident and loose on Tuesday.

During the open portion of practice, James was laughing with teammates and tossed up the occasional underhanded 60-footer reacting with mock disbelief when the low-percentage shot didnt fall. Point guard Kyrie Irving played a long game of 1-on-1 with Cavs assistant coach James Posey, who was on that Heat team that rallied from 2-0 down in the finals against Dallas and hit a huge shot in the clinching game.

Their thinking is simple: Take care of home court Wednesday and Friday, knot the series and see what happens in a best-of-three.

When they go on their runs, we have to be able to withstand those punches, Irving said. And Game 1 and Game 2, weve done it at times. Weve shown that were capable of doing it, but were just constantly on our heels.

Thats what the Warriors do against everyone, not just the Cavs.

Clevelands biggest lead in the series so far is six points. Golden States is 33. In four games this season, including the two regular-season matchups, the Warriors have held the lead for a staggering 87 percent of the time. And in last years finals, Golden State won twice in Cleveland more than proving that it can handle the Cavs raucous home crowd.

We know theyre going to make adjustments, Warriors star and two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry said. We know theyre going to come out with a sense of urgency in the moment. But we need to have that same mentality, because for whats at stake, if were able to go up 3-0, that is a great position to be in. That is the opportunity in front of us.

And no one has ever come back in an NBA series from 3-0 down, either.

We cant relax, Warriors guard Klay Thompson said. No time to relax.

Source: http://nba.nbcsports.com/2016/06/07/warriors-cavaliers-both-know-the-finals-can-turn-quickly/

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Kimbo Slice"s death draws plenty of reaction on social media

Kimbo Slice, mixed martial arts fighter, dead at 42

The mixed martial arts world lost one of its most iconic fighters when Kimbo Slice died Monday at the age of 42.

His loss obviously resonated throughout the MMA community. Here"s a sampling of the reaction to Slice"s death:

RIP Kimbo pic.twitter.com/Q4kZ4xhff8

Dana White (@danawhite) June 7, 2016

We battled inside the cage, warrior vs warrior. Outside the cage, we have loved ones. REST IN PEACE KIMBO SLICE. May G*d Watch Over You.

KEN SHAMROCK (@ShamrockKen) June 7, 2016

Prince, Ali, Kimbo, Jordan Parsons RIPLike I said before make sure you tell everybody that"s important to you that you love them everyday!

Anthony Johnson (@Anthony_Rumble) June 7, 2016

Be blessed on your new journey Kimbo. You inspired so many! With our short time in life,inspiration is King. My condolences to the Slice fam

Rashad Evans (@SugaRashadEvans) June 7, 2016

Sad to hear about the passing of Kimbo Slice. Condolences to his family. #RIP

Frankie Edgar (@FrankieEdgar) June 7, 2016

Rip kimbo Slice...

A photo posted by natediaz209 (@natediaz209) on Jun 7, 2016 at 1:28am PDT

There were also an outpouring of sympathy from elsewhere in the sports world:

Im at a loss for words... Rest In Heaven @KimboSlice pic.twitter.com/dFL7m8X0ck

SHAQ (@SHAQ) June 7, 2016

#RIPKimboSlice - Im glad I got to know you my friend. You were a badass SOB and extremely kind at the same time. U will be missed. #itstrue

Kurt Angle (@RealKurtAngle) June 7, 2016

RIP Kimbo my brother,we will miss you in the 305,only love4U. HH

Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) June 7, 2016

Don"t tell me Unc gone !!!!! pic.twitter.com/CwiuyEwY3P

Antonio Brown (@AntonioBrown84) June 7, 2016

Kimbo Slice. Smh. I Use To Sneak To Watch Your Videos In High School. Rest Easy. #TooYoungTooSoon

Eric Ebron (@Ebron85) June 7, 2016

Source: http://espn.go.com/mma/story/_/id/16020037/kimbo-slice-death-draws-plenty-reaction-social-media

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The Iraqi government"s fight to drive ISIS from Fallujah may be long and b****y

Incubus - Drive

Fallujah is a community that many Americans will recognize, because US military forces fought so long and hard to gain control of the city during the Iraq War.

Hugh Naylor"s latest dispatch from Iraq

Iraqi civilians are being targeted by both ISIS and Shia militias. Read the full story.

Thats one reason it came as such a shock in early 2014 when ISIS militants seized Fallujah, only about 40 miles from Baghdad in Iraq"s Sunni heartland. Since then, residents have endured "two-and-a-half years of living h**l," saidPrince Zeid bin Ra"ad,United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The Iraqi militarys offensive to drive ISIS out of Fallujah has been under way for two weeks now. The soldiers are getting help from Shiite militiamen on the ground a fact that puts many Iraqis on edge, says Hugh Naylor of the Washington Post, who traveled with the Iraqi military to the outskirts of Fallujah early this week. It could create ... a pretty combustible situation given Iraqs sectarian politics."

Indeed, thousands of Iraqis in Fallujah are in danger. ISIS is using civilians as human shields, while Shiite militiamen have been accused of torture and abuse.

Husseinsaid in a press release that "there are extremely distressing, credible reports that some people who survive the terrifying experience of escaping from ISIL, then face severe physical abuse once they reach the other side.

He continued: "Eyewitnesses have described how armed groups operating in support of the Iraqi security forces are intercepting people fleeing the conflict, separating the men and teenage boys from the women and children, and detaining the males for security screening. ... There are even allegations that some individuals have been summarily executed by these armed groups."

Source: http://www.pri.org/stories/2016-06-07/iraqi-government-s-fight-drive-isis-fallujah-may-be-long-and-b****y

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