SOS: Historic Queen Mary Needs Saving

Pharmacy worker believed to have been fearing layoffs

(NEWSER) - A worker at the Long Beach Medical Center shot and killed his boss and another manager before taking his own life yesterday, reports the Los Angeles Times. Witnesses said pharmacy technician Mario Ramirez, 50, showed up for work brandishing a pair of handguns and deliberately sought out his victims. Friends say he had heard rumors of impending layoffs. More»

If vacation isn't vacation without Rover, consider one of these ten pet-friendly towns or your next trip

(NEWSER) - Man's best friend has become a member of the family, so why shouldn't he get a break, too? Make it fun and easy to travel with your pet by visiting one of these hound-hangout towns MSNBC recommends:

1. San Diego, CA
2. Long Beach, CA
3. Carmel, CA

Brings in extra $1M in funding

(NEWSER) - Berkeley schools' superintendent had enough cash in hand to hire three new teachers a year ago—but he chose to take a risk. Bill Huyett opted to spend $250,000 on new administrative staff dedicated to making sure kids showed up at school. Looks like it worked: After nine months, 150 more students are attending each day, on average, bringing in some $1 million in extra funding, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. In March, the school warned 148 teachers of layoffs; now, their jobs are secure. More»

Lawmakers, governors have used license plate cash for other purposes

(NEWSER) - When you buy one of California's special 9/11 memorial license plates, which come emblazoned with the words "We Will Never Forget," you're told that 15% of the money will go to fund scholarships for the victims' children, and that the other 85% will go to fund counterterrorism efforts. But that's not what actually happens, an AP investigation has discovered. Instead, lawmakers and governors continually use the fund, which has collected $15 million so far, for their own ends. More»

...in just the first 6 months of 2012

(NEWSER) - Come June, about 70,000 people will lose long-term unemployment benefits sooner than they expected, bumping the number of people who've had the rug pulled out from under them in the first six months of the year to nearly 500,000, the New York Times reports. Congress renewed its extended unemployment program in February , but reduced the maximum number of weeks from 99 to as low as 63. How quickly benefits disappear is determined largely by how much unemployment has increased recently, meaning hard-hit states like California, which has 11% unemployment, lost benefits early because things hadn't gotten worse. More»