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Korean Peace. Image: Kurious
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North And South Korea: Lasting Peace May Be Near

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It was one step, but it represented the possibility of lasting peace for North and South Korea.

Kim Jong-Un, the leader of North Korea, walked to the border between his country and South Korea … and stepped over it, into South Korea.

There, he shook hands with South Korean leader Moon Jae-in.

It was a joining together not just of two leaders, but of two countries that have been at war for 65 years.

The Korean War began on June 25, 1950 and, although fighting ended in 1953 (when an armistice* was declared), no peace treaty was signed by both countries. Officially the two countries remained at war.

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US Capitol (East Side). Image: Martin Falbisoner
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US Government Shuts Down (ARTICLE UPDATED)

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The federal government of the United States was shut down Friday at midnight.

The shutdown means that most of the services provided by the federal government won’t be available.

It happened because the government failed to get enough votes to pass its 2018 federal budget; it needed 60 votes but only got 50. (The budget is an important document that details how the government will spend money. Without a budget, the government cannot fully operate.)

Both of the major parties in the United States are blaming each other. The Democrats are blaming Trump and his Republican Party and vice-versa.

The reasons for the shutdown are complicated, and they have to do with the fact that government bills are usually about more than one thing. Voters have to agree to the whole bill when they vote for it. One of the reasons the Democrats didn’t vote to pass the budget had to do with the “DACA” part of the bill.

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Map Plotting the Track and Intensity of Hurricane Irma. Image: OverlordQ
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Large Storms Affecting Caribbean, US

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Everyone is talking about Harvey, Irma, Jose and Katia.

They are the names of very large storms, affecting the area around the Caribbean*, Mexico and the southern United States.

Hurricanes are given names, like “Irma” to make it easier to refer to them.

People in these areas are used to dealing with storms. But these storms are much larger than normal. They have very high winds—up to 120 kilometres an hour—with lots of rain that can flood people’s houses and force them to leave the area. (In this case, leaving your home is known as “evacuating.”) In Florida, more than 6.4 million people have been told to evacuate before Irma gets there, according to a report from CBC News.

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Boy voting in mock election; image: A boy votes in a "mock election" outside the Russian embassy in Ottawa. Image: Chrystia Chudczak, www.chrystiachudczak.com.
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Crimea Has The World’s Attention

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Some events are happening in Crimea and the world is taking notice of them.

The small peninsula of Crimea, attached to the country of Ukraine, sits in the middle of Europe. Crimea is about half the size of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia; about two million people live there.

Crimea is at the centre of a major political battle between Russia and Ukraine. The rest of world is watching that conflict closely.

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Image: South Africa The Good News
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World Mourns the Death of Nelson Mandela

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The world is mourning the passing of one of the greatest leaders of our time.

Nelson Mandela is dead at 95.

He died on Thursday in Johannesburg, South Africa, from a lung infection.

Mandela was a symbol of freedom for the people of South Africa.

“Our nation has lost its greatest son. Our people have lost a father,” South African President Jacob Zuma said in an announcement.

He called this, “the moment of our deepest sorrow.”

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Rob Ford when running for mayor in 2012
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Toronto Mayor Rob Ford Removed From Office

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A judge has ruled that the mayor of one of the largest cities in North America has to step down.

Toronto’s Mayor, Rob Ford, has been removed from office–in other words, forced to stop being the mayor.

The judge’s decision takes effect two weeks from now. That’s when Ford must be out of his office.

Ford was elected in 2010 and had another two years to go, in his term as mayor.

Ford was found to have violated “conflict of interest” laws.

That’s because when Ford was a councillor, he raised some money for the football team he coaches, using City Hall stationery.

The city’s integrity commissioner — the person who advises elected officials about ethics — told Ford he had to give the money back. Ford refused.

When he became mayor, Ford asked council to reverse the decision.

In other words, he asked councillors to vote to let him keep the money and not have to give it back. Ford also voted in that vote.

The judge said that the mayor voting in this way was a conflict of interest.

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