Most Recent Posts

ANSAN, South Korea (AP) — As parents of the dead wept, more than 70 teenagers who survived a ferry sinking that killed hundreds of their schoolmates walked in a somber procession Wednesday to their first classes since the April disaster.

Some of the 73 students, wearing white and black uniforms and carrying book bags, bowed their heads as they cried and walked slowly from a bus to the school entrance. Some stopped to hug the parents of their friends, who caressed their hair and faces. Adults carried banners of encouragement. One read: "We pray the dead will rest in peace." Another simply said: "I love you."

The anger, grief and deep remorse at Danwon High School in Ansan, outside of Seoul, was a reflection of what many South Koreans have felt since the April 16 sinking that left more than 300 people dead or missing. Of the 325 students on a class trip to the southern holiday island of Jeju, 75 were rescued, 245 died and 5 are still missing. Two of those rescued had already returned to school, officials said.

The return to classes of the survivors, who had been staying at a facility in Ansan where they had classes and therapy sessions, comes amid court hearings for the ferry crew and the officials from the company that owned it. Many South Koreans also fault the government, the coast guard and even society for failing the victims.

"We ask for a thorough investigation to find out why our friends and teachers had to become victims and why the rescue efforts didn't proceed properly and led to more victims," one of the surviving students, Shin Young-jin, said in an emotional address. "We hope that you will try to create a safer nation so that such a horrible accident never happens again."

After decades of negligence, many South Koreans are now questioning the country's history of ignoring safety issues as it pursued rapid economic development above all else following the devastation of the Korean War, which began 64 years ago Wednesday with a North Korean invasion.

The government of President Park Geun-hye, whose dictator father ruled during the economic boom in the 1960s and 1970s that was dubbed the "Miracle on the Han," after the river that cuts through Seoul, has been battered by criticism that it should have done more before the sinking on safety and monitoring issues and that its incompetence botched the rescue operations.

The 15 crew members responsible for navigating the Sewol ferry face charges of negligence and of failing to perform their duties to rescue passengers. Prosecutors say they abandoned the ship even though they knew passengers would be trapped and killed when the ferry sank. The defense has denied any collusion, saying the crew members were confused, injured and panicked.

Shin, the student, said that many people have tried to console the surviving students, but others have asked "unpleasant" questions that have reminded them of the sinking and made them feel guilty. He said some people were even "burying daggers in our hearts" by saying that the survivors "betrayed" their classmates by coming back alive. "Whenever we heard such things, our hearts tore apart and ached and we shed tears because we felt guilty and sorry for our friends."

"Just as we cannot forget them, we ask that the citizens of this country also never forget them," Shin said of the dead, stopping at one point as tears choked his words. "For the adults who lead us, we ask that you exhaustively search for those responsible for this crime."

___

AP writers Foster Klug and Hyung-jin Kim contributed to this story from Seoul.

DENVER (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton is encouraging companies to train and hire young people, offering a new jobs pitch during her family's annual domestic policy summit as she considers another presidential campaign.

The former secretary of state was launching a project called "Job One" at the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting Tuesday, featuring hiring, training and mentoring initiatives from 10 companies, including The Gap, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft and Marriott.

Clinton planned to address economic growth and youth employment during the meeting and was unveiling partnerships aimed at helping people age 16-24 who are out of school and unemployed. Students preparing for the workforce in the aftermath of the recession have faced persistently high unemployment levels at rates about twice the national average.

"Many Americans are still feeling that they have not recovered from the Great Recession. They are still worried about their future, the future of their children," Clinton said in an interview last week with Fox News, pointing to culprits like student debt, stagnant wages and income inequality. "They look and they say, 'What happened to the American dream?'"

Clinton is in the middle of a book tour for her new memoir, "Hard Choices," about her four years at the State Department under President Barack Obama, but interviews surrounding it have brought attention to her own economic circumstances.

The former first lady told ABC News earlier this month that she and former President Bill Clinton were "dead broke" when they left the White House in early 2001. Republicans noted the former president had earned more than $100 million from 2001 to 2007 through book deals, paid speeches and other work, and Mrs. Clinton can command $200,000 for a speech.

In an interview with The Guardian published Sunday, Clinton said the public doesn't see her as part of the problem of the nation's gap between the wealthy and poor, "because we pay ordinary income tax, unlike a lot of people who are truly well off, not to name names; and we've done it through dint of hard work." Republicans pounced on the remarks, asserting Clinton was downplaying her wealth and did not understand the struggles of ordinary Americans.

Clinton often notes that she worked her way through college and law school and her interest in youth employment goes back decades. In the 1980s, she was part of a commission established by the W.T. Grant Foundation that studied the economic struggles of young people who did not attend or complete college.

As she considers her political future, the way Clinton frames economic policies will be closely watched by Democratic activists who have sought ways to raise the minimum wage and address income inequality. The initiatives being announced Tuesday also allow Clinton to speak to the economic plight of young people, who backed Obama in large numbers during the 2008 Democratic primaries.

Under the Job One initiative, 10 companies will commit to expanding training, hiring or mentoring for young people within their companies and will urge others to do the same. Other participants include Corning, Ernst & Young, Lifeway Foods, MDC Partners, Salesforce.com and Symantec.

The project will also recruit 100 small businesses to find ways to hire young people and create a new employment network through the Clinton Global Initiative to spur more job opportunities.

In all, the commitments are expected to reach about 150,000 young people, Clinton officials estimated.

JPMorgan Chase, for example, plans to create 4,000 summer jobs and will help another 20,000 young people prepare for the job market. Courtyard by Marriott is partnering with the National Academy Foundation, which helps prepare young people for college and careers, to provide job shadowing and career mentoring to more than 10,000 young people and their teachers over three years.

Gap will train 90,000 young people through partnerships with nonprofit organizations and local Gap retail stores while expanding its internship program.

"What we're really hoping to do is create a movement of employers who will recognize this is a pool of talent that we haven't thought about before," said Gail Gershon, Gap Inc.'s executive director for community leadership.

___

Follow Ken Thomas on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Ken_Thomas

WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters cast ballots Tuesday in primary elections in six states, plus a runoff in Mississippi. Highlights:

___

TOP OF THE TICKET

In Mississippi's often-bitter Republican contest, veteran Sen. Thad Cochran defeated state Sen. Chris McDaniel. The tea party-backed insurgent had channeled voters' anti-Washington mood and forced a runoff. McDaniel offered no explicit concession, but instead complained of "dozens of irregularities" that he implied were due to Cochran courting Democrats and independents.

As he sought a seventh term, Cochran reached out to traditionally Democratic voters — blacks and union members — who were eligible to participate in the runoff. People who cast ballots in the June 3 Democratic primary could not vote in the runoff.

Cochran, 76, had sent billions of federal dollars to his poor state over a long career. His 41-year-old challenger said taxpayers could not afford that federal largesse.

___

NEW LAWMAKER FOR NEW YORK?

Looking for a 23rd term, Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel of New York worked to fend off a state senator who could become the first Dominican-American member of Congress. They were locked in a close race early Wednesday.

The 84-year-old Rangel, the third-most-senior member of the House, faced a rematch against state Sen. Adriano Espaillat in Harlem and upper Manhattan. Two years ago, Rangel prevailed in the primary by fewer than 1,100 votes.

In this race, Rangel said Espaillat "wants to be the Jackie Robinson of the Dominicans in the Congress," adding that Espaillat should tell voters "just what the heck has he done besides saying he's a Dominican?"

___

DOUBLE DIPPING IN OKLAHOMA

Both of Oklahoma's Senate seats were on the ballot for the first time in recent history.

Sen. Jim Inhofe fended off minor challengers in the Republican primary in one of those contests.

In the other, two-term Rep. James Lankford of Oklahoma won the GOP nomination in the race to succeed Sen. Tom Coburn, who is stepping down with two years left in his term. In a blow to the tea party movement, Lankford, a member of the House GOP leadership, defeated T.W. Shannon, a member of the Chickasaw Nation and the state's first black House speaker.

National tea party groups and the Senate Conservatives Fund had backed Shannon, who also had the support of Sarah Palin and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

Shannon, 36, had questioned if Lankford was sufficiently conservative. Lankford, 46 and a former Southern Baptist camp leader, supported bipartisan budget agreements and voted to increase the nation's borrowing authority — favorite objections for tea party leaders.

Oklahoma has not elected a Democrat to an open Senate seat since David Boren in 1978, and Republicans were expected to hold it.

___

UNNECESSARY UTAH

Utah technically had a primary, but there was little suspense and even fewer consequences.

The state is essentially a one-party operation where Republicans are guaranteed to occupy most major offices. The party selected its nominees for the state's four congressional districts, governor and attorney general at its party convention, and Tuesday's vote was largely unnecessary.

Democrats did the same, but they're unlikely to get anywhere in November.

___

COLORADO GOP DIVIDED

Primary day was an all-Republican affair in Colorado, a reflection of how the party remains divided in that key state.

Former Rep. Bob Beauprez won the crowded primary that included 2008 presidential candidate Tom Tancredo, an immigration opponent. That was welcome news to national Republicans who feared that Tancredo would be a drag on the GOP ticket in November. Beauprez faces Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper.

District Attorney Ken Buck, a former Senate candidate, defeated three other Republicans for the party's nomination to replace Rep. Cory Gardner. The congressman passed on re-election to challenge Democratic Sen Mark Udall.

___

SENATE CONTROL

Tuesday's primaries were unlikely to affect the partisan makeup of the Senate.

Udall and Gardner were assured of their parties' nominations. Their Nov. 4 contest will help determine whether Republicans can pick up the six seats they need to control the Senate next year.

Mississippi and Oklahoma are solidly Republican states, so winners of those GOP primaries will be strongly favored in November.

___

S.C. SCHOOLS CHIEF

In South Carolina, the widow of legendary Republican strategist Lee Atwater lost to the leader of the state's principals' and superintendents' association, Molly Spearman.

Sally Atwater, a longtime fixture in GOP politics and a former educator, struggled as a first-time candidate. Debates did not favor her and, in one interview, she was unable to explain her position on whether sex education and evolution should be taught in public schools.

The late Lee Atwater was a top strategist for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. His hard-charging tactics are legendary in GOP circles, although his wife's campaign did not seem to harness them.

___

UP NEXT

The next major date on the midterm calendar is July 22, when voters in Georgia will pick between Rep. Jack Kingston and businessman David Perdue for the Republican nomination for Senate in a runoff.

___

Associated Press writers Charles Babington in Washington, Nicholas Riccardi in Denver and Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

___

Follow Philip Elliott on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/philip_elliott

Cooking is a messy endeavor, and few recipe books escape drips, spills and splatters. But help is at hand.

Two young Italian designers have come up with I Tradizionali, a collection of beautiful and temporary tattoos of Italian recipes that fit on your forearm.

Do the shallots go in before or after the peppers? How many eggs make the perfect frittata? Not to worry, and don't reach for the cookbook — just glance at your arm.

The creative solution is the brainchild of Marina Cinciripini and Sarah Richiuso, a designing duo that first conceived of tattoo recipes in 2013 for a design competition called the Premio Lissone and won second place in the "Rituals" category.

"The project is a combination of our two biggest passions, cooking and illustration," says Richiuso. "The goal is to help people approach good food in a fun way."

i i