Readable, teachable news.
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
The famous Manchester United soccer team has waited two years to sign Charlie Jackson to the team.
That’s because he was only three years old—they waited until he was five.
Coaches at United say that Jackson is going to be a superstar player.
Even at three years of age, he impressed talent scouts with his ability to handle and control the ball.
Canada and the United States are working together to make it easier for people to travel across their common border.
This week, U.S. President Barack Obama and Canada’s Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, agreed to a “cross-border plan” to make it easier and quicker for Canadians to travel to the U.S. It will also help companies in both countries to do business together.
Harper has agreed to a “common perimeter”–a type of border all around North America–so more careful checking can be done on who and what comes across the borders from Canada. Canada has also agreed to get more information about people when they come into Canada from other countries and to put in American-style bomb detection machines for checking luggage.
Recently, Vladimir Putin was elected President of Russia.
The official count of votes said he won with a clear majority of the votes (more than 50 per cent) but many people believe that his supporters stuffed the ballot boxes with false voting cards and that he really shouldn’t be President.
Canada’s rich people are getting richer and the country’s poor people are getting poorer.
That’s because the gap — or distance — between the amount of money the richest and poorest people earn at their jobs is widening.
The richest Canadians earn 10 times more than the poorest.
That means if the average rich person earns about $100,000 a year, the poorest earns only about $10,000 for a whole year.
A new report by an international organization called the OECD* said the same thing has been happening in many countries including the United States.
It has been happening since the 1990s, before the new millennium.
Almost a year later, the effects of Arab Spring are still being felt.
Last December, the people of North Africa started what is being called “Arab Spring.”
Arab Spring refers to a series of uprisings by the people in a number of Arab countries.
The citizens rebelled when they could no longer put up with dictators and their cruelty.
They forced the President of Tunisia to flee to Saudi Arabia and the President of Egypt to quit his job and move away.
Nat Atherton is a Canadian living and working in Thailand. He gave TKN a first-hand account of the day-to-day havoc this year’s floods have caused.
The flooding here has been horrible. It hasn’t yet come into the centre of the capital (Bangkok), where I live, but has affected many of the people I work with.
Many of the poorer Thais live in the surrounding areas, which are flooded chest deep (1.5 metres) in some places.
I know a great many people who have lost their houses.
Many others haven’t been able to go home to check on their homes since rivers of dirty water separate their work from their houses.
Many well-known tourist districts have also been affected, including the world’s largest outdoor market, Chatuchak.
A number of countries in Europe are having problems with their finances and their leaders.
This year, four prime ministers in Europe have quit their jobs or been forced out of office.
That’s because their countries have spent more money than they make and now they can’t pay their debts.
Some of the countries are making deals with other countries in Europe and the International Monetary Fund for a “bailout.”
A bailout is a loan to a country to keep it from going bankrupt.
The richer countries agree to put in more money to save the poorer countries.
Italy’s prime minister is stepping down.
On Tuesday, Silvio Berlusconi announced that he will resign.
His announcement came after a key vote in parliament indicated that he does not have the support of the majority of parliament.
Italy is in the midst of an “economic crisis” – the country has borrowed more money than it can pay. It has too much “debt.”
Other countries, like Ireland, Portugal and most recently Greece have had similar crises.
However, Italy’s problem is much bigger and arguably more of a problem for the whole European Union (EU). The European Union is a partnership of 27 countries in Europe.
Italy is more than $2.6 trillion in debt.
For months, Thailand has been experiencing a devastating flood.
The waters are wreaking havoc in 25 provinces, flooding farmlands, homes and businesses.
The water gathers in the country’s central plains and makes its way south to the sea, going through Thailand’s capital city, Bangkok, on its route.
More than 500 people have died in the floods.
It is estimated that more than three million people have been affected.
At least a fifth of Bangkok is now under water. Bangkok has many canals and rivers that cut through it.
The polluted water is a health hazard; it is up to chest-high in some areas of the city.
Greece is having a crisis over its money and its leaders. Greece’s crisis is affecting other countries in Europe.
Over time, Greece has borrowed a lot of money–more than it can pay back.
The European Union (EU) is a partnership of 27 countries including Greece.
The EU countries have been working together to come up with a plan to help Greece repay the money it owes.
If Greece can’t figure out a solution for its problems, it may go bankrupt or be forced out of the European Union.
