12-year-old Boy Stabbed to Death After Inventing World Changing Movement

A Chris Chandler Original Story

A young boy, Trevor McKinney, 12, began a movement called 'Pay It Forward' which consisted of himself, helping three people and instead of telling them to pay them back, he told them to 'pay it forward' to three other people, who which then have to pay it forward to three more and so on, in hopes to make a change in the world. I discovered McKinney and this movement when I was given a brand new jaguar vehicle from a stranger after mine was smashed by a criminal in his vehicle, trying to escape the police. I then wondered why this stranger was doing such a voulentary thing for me, and later he told me the story of how someone else payed it forward for him. I began to track this story and it lead me to several different people. After the man who gave me the jaguar, I was lead to Sidney G. who claimed that the 'Pay It Forward' was his idea. He adventually told me that it was some old lady in Las Vegas, Nevada who had payed it forward for him. So then I set off for Las Vegas, Nevada in hopes to find the genius behind this idea. I found the lady who had payed it forward for Sidney, Grace McKinney, 63. She claimed her daughter had payed it forward to her, who was the mother of Trevor McKinney. On the day of McKinney's twelvth birthday party. I got McKinney's address from Grace McKinney and confronted Arlene McKinney, 32, about the Pay It Forward, and discovered that her son, Trevor McKinney, 12, started the movement and then payed it forward for her. McKinney then agreed to do an interview with me about the idea of Pay It Forward and what had inspired him to start this movement. During the interview, McKinney talked about his social studies teacher, Eugene Simonet, 36, assigning an assignment to his 7th Grade social studies class to change the world, and he was what inspired the boy to create the movement. 

 Moments after finishing the interview, McKinney went to retrieve his bike and make his way home after such an astonishing accomplishment, as Pay It Forward was beyond more successful than the boy had believed. McKinney grabbed his bike and turned the corner to find one of his fellow classmates being punched and kicked by older boys; Zack Brown, 15 along with Nico Harris,15. McKinney sprang into defense before leaving the school. He got on his bike and rode into the scene, knocking Brown off his feet and onto the ground. Hearing the crash of McKinney's bike,his mother, Arlene McKinney, and teacher Eugene Simonet, saw the fight from the upper floor and rushed down the stairs to break it up. After rising to their feet, McKinney began punching Brown, in which he began to do the same back. Harris, standing and watching, encouraged Brown to punch and beat McKinney.  Suddenly, another older student, a friend of Brown and Harris. Loren Thomas, 15,  appeared on scene with a pocket knife. He grasped McKinney and  shoved the knife deep into his abdomen. After seeing what had happened, Brown and Harris ran away followed by Thomas before McKinney's mother and teacher made it to the scene. Simonet arrived to find McKinney lying on the ground with blood coming out of the  deep wound in his abdomen.  He rushed to call the ambulance as McKinney's mother arrived and tried to awaken McKinney. 

Pictures of the fight caught by school cameras

The ambulance did not arrive for approximately twenty minutes, when  they arrived and rushed McKinney to the hospital in critical condition. By the time they reached the hospital, it was too late. McKinney was pronounded dead at 7:25 this evening. After McKinney's death, there have now been several confirmed acts of Pay It Forward around the world.  Trevor McKinney's legacy of Pay It Forward is one that will live on and continue to change the world as generations pass.

Originated From: Chris Chandler

2003-2007 Pontiac Vibe Added To Long, Long List Of Takata-Related Recalls

Last week, Toyota updated its long list of vehicles affected by the ongoing recall of Takata airbags. Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed that the Toyota Corolla Matrix (aka the Toyota Matrix) was on that list and wondered, "What about the Pontiac Vibe? Wasn't it essentially the same car?"

Indeed, it was, and that's why, as Detroit News reports, General Motors is recalling more than 243,000 Pontiac Vibes from model years 2003-2007 to replace their passenger-side airbags.

The Vibe has been involved in several other Takata-related recalls. However, some of those recalls were missing quite a few vehicle identification numbers (or VINs); others were limited to specific geographic areas and/or to replacement of driver-side airbags. This update includes Vibe models nationwide that were manufactured between January 18, 2003 and June 6, 2007 for the 2003-2007 model years.

Originated from: The Washington Post

Transition in Pakistan

The tensions in Pakistan had been building all year, and President General Pervez Musharraf was getting it from all sides. The Taliban gradually solidified control in the northwest of the country, and Islamic extremists, who had holed up in Islamabad's Red Mosque, led to a violent standoff in July. At the same time, liberal democrats were pushing for free elections and for Musharraf to give up command of the military, while Western governments were pressuring him into not-so-secret power-sharing negotiations with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, which ultimately failed. Bhutto returned to Pakistan from exile in October only to face an assassination attempt, and extremists stepped up suicide bombings in the cities. After months of threatening to do so, Musharraf imposed emergency rule on Nov. 11. He has since faced protests in support of the independent judiciary that he sacked, with white collar workers — who benefited most from the economic reforms he passed — taking to the streets calling for his removal. Grasping for legitimacy, Musharraf gave up his military leadership and has scheduled parliamentary elections for Jan. 8. Some opposition leaders say they will boycott the vote, but Musharraf's biggest challenge may come from the U.S., if the Bush Administration decides he's a dispensable ally without his general's uniform.

Originated from: TIME

Obama Approval Barely Ahead of Bush on Eve of 2006 Midterms

President Obama's approval ratings in the final week before the midterm elections are only slightly better than George W. Bush's were at this point in 2006.

Obama's approval rating is 39 percent, according to a new CBS News poll. Bush's approval rating was 34 percent in an October 2006 CBS poll.

That year, Democrats won control of the House and Senate.

The newest Washington Post-ABC News poll, released earlier this week, showed Obama's approval at 43 percent. Bush's was at 37 percent in an October 2006 Post-ABC poll.

But Bush 2006 and Obama 2014 appear to be equally polarizing figures when it comes to political party affiliation, the Post-ABC poll shows. Seventy-six percent of Democrats approve of the job Obama is doing, much like the 77 percent of Republicans who approved of Bush.

Just 11 percent of Republicans approve of Obama. The exact same percentage of Democrats said they approved of Bush in 2006.

Originated from: The Washington Post

2006 Acura RSX, 2006-2007 Honda S2000 Recalled For Brake Defect

Honda is conducting a voluntary safety recall of certain 2006 model year Acura RSX cars and 2006 and 2007 Honda S2000 sports cars to fix a potential brake defect.

A notice on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website puts the number of vehicles potentially affected by the recall in the U.S. at 18,352.

Affected 2006 Acura RSX vehicles were built from January 18, 2006 through August 12, 2006, while affected 2006-2007 Honda S2000 vehicles were built from January 19, 2006 through November 13, 2006. 

The problem

According to the NHTSA bulletin, the issue is that the brake booster may not be able to maintain a vacuum when the brake pedal is depressed, thus decreasing brake assist.

A notice on the Honda website attributes the problem to a manufacturing error in the power brake system components allowing them to be produced outside of specification. The automaker said that this condition could potentially cause decreased brake assistance over time, thus increasing crash risk.

2006 Honda S2000

What Honda will do

Honda will notify owners of affected vehicles and dealers will inspect the brake booster assembly, replacing it as necessary. The service will be performed at no charge.

The Honda safety recall campaign is JA4. Acura’s is JA5. The safety campaigns are expected to begin in July 2013.

In the meantime, owners of 2006-2007 Honda S2000 sports cars with any questions or concerns may contact Honda at 1-800-999-1009 and owners of 2006 Acura RSX sedans may call Acura at 1-800-382-2238, pressing option number 4 in both cases. Owners may also go to www.recalls.honda.com andwww.recalls.acura.com for more information.

Alternatively, owners of vehicles involved in the campaign may contact NHTSA’s Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 or go to http://www.safercar.gov.  Reference the NHTSA campaign ID No. 13V246000

Originated from: The Car Connection