New England Sun-Times

MARSHFIELD, Wis. — A school board member who fears a children's book about the Muppets is too graphic for young children  will try to get the book removed from kindergarten curriculum  at a Wednesday meeting between  Marshfield  school officials and community members. Marshfield School Board member Mary Carney in July objected to the district’s use of the book  For Every Child a Better World  by  Jim Henson  in kindergarten classes, The book, she contends, contains images of suffering children living in poverty and violence, including one illustration that shows a child living in a box in the rain. Some people have said they were traumatized after reading the book, according to Carney, who cited online reviews as evidence. “I just have concerns that it’s too graphic, even though these are Muppets characters,” Carney said. “Unfortunately in this world there is a lot of war and strife and poverty; I un...

MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AP) — Officials say two male Afghan nationals being trained at an Air Force base in Georgia have gone missing. In a news release issued Tuesday night, base officials said the two students didn't report on Monday to "their regular maintenance training" with the  81st Fighter Squadron  at Moody Air Force base, located near Valdosta, about 230 miles south of Atlanta. The release notes that the two men have been at Moody since February 2015 and "were screened prior to their arrival in the United States more than a year ago." The release adds that federal authorities are searching for the students, who have been training "alongside American counterparts for the entirety of 2015 and do not pose any apparent threat." AJC.com reports that the 81st Fighter Squadron was reactivated in January to train Afghan airmen.

Douglas Tompkins , the co-founder of outdoor equipment brand the North Face, has died in a kayaking accident in Chile at the age of 72. a wealthy U.S. businessman and environmental activist who bought up large swaths of land in South America's Patagonia region with the aim to keep them pristine, has died. He was 72. Tompkins died Tuesday from severe hypothermia in a kayaking accident in Chile, authorities said. The Aysen health service said Tompkins, who was a co-founder of The North Face and  Esprit clothing  companies, was boating with five other foreigners when their kayaks capsized in a lake in the Patagonia region of southern Chile. Tompkins died in the intensive care unit of the hospital in  Coyhaique , a town 1,700 kilometers (1,056 miles) south of Santiago. "He had lost consciousness and wasn't breathing" when brought to the hospital by helicopter, Dr.  Carlos Salazar  told local television stations. Chile's army said strong waves on G...