The photograph shows John Wayne with his two sons during a break in filming on the set of The Conqueror, a big budget blockbuster about Genghis Khan shot in the Utah desert in 1954. It was one of Hollywood’s most famous mis-castings. The duke could do many things but playing a 13th century Mongol warlord was not one of them. Film geeks consider it one of the great turkeys of Hollywood’s golden age.
There is another, darker reason it endures in film lore. The photograph hints at it. Wayne clutches a black metal box while another man appears to adjust the controls. Wayne’s two teenage sons, Patrick and Michael, gaze at it, clearly intrigued, perhaps a bit anxious. The actor himself appears relaxed, leaning on Patrick, his hat at a jaunty angle. The box, which rests on a patch of scrub, looks unremarkable. It is in fact a Geiger counter.
Hollywood and the downwinders still grapple with nuclear fallout
Warships rescue thousands off Libya coast
European warships and coast guard vessels have rescued more than 2,000 migrants off the coast of Libya.
The Malta-based, Migrant Offshore Aid Station, said it coordinated the operation along with Italian, Irish and German ships. Italy's coastguard could not confirm the numbers, but said it was trying to help around a dozen other vessels.
Cuomo administration keeping fracking ban in New York
The Cuomo administration is sticking by its decision to ban hydrofracking in New York despite a federal report Thursday that found it caused no “widespread” water contamination.
A spokesman for the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation said New York’s decision not to allow the controversial natural gas drilling process was based on factors beyond possible water contamination.
U.S. Air Force introduces new policy preventing discharge of transgender troops
The Air Force announced a policy Thursday that makes it more difficult to discharge transgender service men and women, offering greater protections against discrimination based on gender identity.
The move comes two months after the Army made a similar policy, inching the nation's military closer to allowing openly transgender troops. Before this new policy, soldiers diagnosed with gender dysphoria, or those who identify as the opposite sex, were discharged from service based on medical grounds with decisions made by doctors and unit commanders. A psychologist or psychiatrist had to approve any recommended discharge over gender dysphoria, and a unit commander had to determine if the condition disrupted the individual's performance.
Fracking could contaminate drinking water: U.S. EPA
Fracking for shale oil and gas has not led to widespread pollution of drinking water, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency draft report said on Thursday, although it warned some drilling activities could potentially cause health risks.
The study, requested by Congress and five years in the making, said fracking could contaminate drinking water under certain conditions, such as when fluids used in the process leaked into the water table.
Dozens of Iraqi security force members killed in army base attack
At least 42 members of Iraq's security forces have been killed in a suicide attack targeting an army base north of Fallujah, in Iraq's Anbar province.
The bombing was carried out with an armored Humvee vehicle laden with explosives, military sources told Al Jazeera. Witnesses said ammunition stored in the base's depot continued to explode several hours after the initial attack, which occurred at 3 a.m. local time Monday.
Indiana’s First Church of Pot
Be careful what you wish for: A ‘church of cannabis’ is the latest unintended consequence of the right’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act madness. Hoosiers, get your Hookahs.
In the latest Unintended Consequence of the “Religious Freedom” laws now sweeping the country, an Indiana church today was granted tax-exempt status by the IRS. But not just any church: The First Church of Cannabis, which proposes to exploit Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) to smoke pot at its services.
Mount Everest's Glaciers Could Lose Up To 99 Percent Of Ice By 2100 Due To Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Researchers estimated that if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise at the current rate, the glaciers in the Everest mountain region could lose over 70 percent of their volume by the year 2100.
The study warns the famous mountains are extremely sensitive to climate warming, and major ice loss should be anticipated throughout the 21st century, the European Geosciences Union reported.
Jeb Bush: big bucks and corporate boardrooms: 15 cases
Jeb Bush served on the board of directors or as an adviser to at least 15 companies and nonprofits since leaving office as Florida governor in early 2007. Here are the 15, his role for each, the years he served and his pay in the cases it is known:
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Tenet Healthcare Corp., publicly traded hospital operator in Dallas
Board of Directors 2007-2014
$2,375,870 cash and stock
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