The world renowned singer and actress Madonna recently settled a lawsuit with one of her neighbors over a dispute regarding noise levels. According to a December 1st, 2011 report by BBC News, Madonna’s neighbor Karen George filed a legal complaint against Madonna as she claimed the musical artist was using her studio as a musical center for rehearsals. Karen claimed that the noise levels were very high and caused her to have to leave her apartment due to the loud noises and vibrations that shook the walls.

In George’s complaint, she stated that the music rehearsals lasted at least three hours per day and were unbearable. There was loud music, stomping from dancing and walls that shook for hours. Ms. George also took legal action against the management company who owned the building because they never listened to any of her complaints.

Madonna tried to have this legal matter dismissed in August as she claimed that she made proper modifications to lower the noise levels and stomping. However, Ms. George stated that those changes didn’t help at all.

Since the lawsuit, Madonna has built a studio elsewhere and no longer uses her apartment that overlooks Central Park. Unfortunately, this didn’t dismiss the legal action against her. Attorneys for the award winning musician did not release any details in the settlement between Madonna and Karen George.

Madonna moved into this apartment after divorcing film maker Guy Ritchie. Madonna always claimed that her music never went above the legal limits of noise allowed and never received any citations for disturbing the peace.

In recent news that will surely get animal rights activists in an uproar, Congress lifted a ban that has been in place for the last five years which prevented slaughterhouses from slaughtering horses for human consumption. According to a November 30th report by ABC News, the Congressional ruling stemmed from a bill that President Obama signed on November 18th which reversed the ruling made by congress in 2006.

The horse meat will most likely be exported to Europe and Asia since most cultures in America do not consume horse meet. States like California have strict laws on consuming horse meat and are still expected to remain in full force despite the Congressional ruling.

The majority of Americans still view horses as pets and are publicly protesting this ruling. However, advocates for horse slaughtering have stated that because of this ban, sick or lame horses have been left abandoned or had to be shipped to Canada or Mexico where they could be slaughtered.

The last horse slaughterhouse was closed in 2007 in Illinois, which is another state with strict horse consumption laws. However, since the ban, states like Colorado have shown that horse neglect has gone up 60% since prior to the ban in 2006.

The USDA said they would inspect any horse slaughter house upon opening, to ensure that they met federal laws. The horse slaughtering industry is expected to bring in over sixty million dollars per year and is expected to be up in running within two to three months. As of now, many citizens and animal rights activists across the nation are trying to fight this ruling.

China is anything but happy with the U.S. Senate’s decision to pass an anti-Yuan bill into law last month. China’s Commerce Department stated that if President Barack Obama goes through with the signing of the bill, the decision would be met with very harsh retaliation. They state that the current proposed legislation would do nothing but harm the interests of both nations.

China’s currently implemented currency is not free floating against the dollar. It tends to change in value based on the different decisions made at the People’s Bank of China. However, it has increased in strength by more than 40% since 2005. The Yuan is expected to appreciate by around 6% annually. Many of the multination U.S. companies that are residing in China disagree with the bill, saying that it is simply detrimental to the relationship between both of the countries. House Republicans have already made their decision, saying the bill would be dead-on-arrival before a vote would even be considered.

The U.S Commerce Department stated that last week it had discovered Chinese companies that were dumping steel wheels and manipulating duties on U.S. imports ranging from 110.58 to 193.54%. There was also a trade complaint filed against China by a group of U.S. solar cell and panel makers, stating that China is illegally dumping silicon solar cells and panels by using massive subsidies. Solar cell panel production is currently dominated by the Chinese, and is considered to have a very impressive green technology portfolio.

Adnan al Bakkour, the attorney general of the Syrian city of Hama, resigned after stating that he has witnessed more than 70 people executed in one day. According to an August 31, 2011 report by Fox News, Bakkour said he was being forced to resign by President Bashar al Assad.
Bakkour also stated that he witnessed hundreds of people being tortured and more than 420 people being buried in mass graves. Bakkoour’s resignation came on the same day as the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 473 Syrians had been killed during Ramadan, which is the a Muslim holy month.
Protestors have be speaking out against the regime of President Assad despite the rising death toll. Of the 473 people killed, 360 were civilians, including 25 children and 14 women. 113 of them were members of the government.

In total, over 2,200 people have been killed since March, as the President is cracking down on pro-democracy campaigns and supporters. The violence appears to have no end in sight. Soldiers are moving through various cities and infiltrating residencies in effort to kill off the pro-democracy supporters.

A member of the United States State Department says that this country can’t support or recognize Syria and it’s presidential regime. The U.S. State Department does not support any government that tortures or kills its own people especially children.

Ramadan is supposed to be a holy month of spiritual joy and worship. Unfortunately, it has become a time of great mourning and loss as thousands of people are being murdered.

The Obama administration is looking to bypass Congress’ decision of overriding the nation’s main public-education law. Waivers will be granted to the states that agree with his schools agenda. If states don’t agree with the No Child Left Behind law’s 2014 deadline, which requires that students achieve 100 percent proficiency on all of their required testing, they can avoid it by signing off on certain reforms, which are currently unspecified. It is said that waivers will be offered to schools as early as this school year – Congress has been hesitating to take action and fix the nine year-old law according to White House domestic policy advisers.

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan considers the current legislation to be insufficient, encouraging schools to hold dumbed-down standards by only focusing on testing proficiency. If the law isn’t changed soon, it is estimated that about 80 percent of U.S. schools are at risk of being labeled as failing. The House education committee chairman, John Kline, says that his committee is working on various bills to change the law. The promotions of charter schools, privately run public schools, and the cutting of half of the federal education programs currently under the law, are some of the changes being sought. The No Child Left Behind law is former president George W. Bush’s signature education initiative, it requires schools to show that all of their students are proficient on state standardized reading and math tests, as well as yearly progress by the year 2004.

In 2010, a judge ruled that the ban on gay marriage was unconstitutional. So the supporters of gay marriage have taken to the courts to get same sex marriages legally recognized in the state of California. However, it appears that the highest courts in California are leaning toward the opposition of gay marriage, according to a September 6th report by CNN.com. At the heart of the issue is whether or not the state should intervene in this issue and how it would impact the voters who battled over Prop 8.

ProtectMarriage.com has been leading the charge against gay marriage as they vehemently oppose same sex marriages. They are trying to uphold Prop 8 where the voters supported the institution of traditional marriage and opposed gay marriage in California. Currently there are 6 other states in the country that have legalized gay marriage.

The high courts of California have to decide whether or not to uphold the will of the people as a result of Prop 8 or ignore it and make an independent ruling. Additionally, the buck could be passed onto the United States Supreme Court to make a ruling on this matter. Regardless of the outcome of the state’s ruling, this issue will continue be heavily debated.

Same sex marriage has caused battles within the state unlike any other. Millions of dollars are being spend on both sides as big name lawyers are swinging their legal sticks toward each other. The state’s court will rule within 90 days on the arguments heard. Early speculations point to the side of the opposition of gay marriages.