Hello! This is the inaugural article of the College Candy Kaleidoscope: a summary of the day’s news. I am your host (don’t laugh) Kandy Korrespondant! So, without further ado…

Reverend Jeremiah Wright, the now infamous pastor of Presidential contender Barack Obama, said on Monday that attacks on his fiery sermons represent a societal failure to understand black church traditions.

On Monday officials reported that a Drug Cartel war near the California-Mexico border town of Tijuana has resulted in at least fifteen deaths.

On Sunday, the New York Times exposed correspondence between the US Department of Justice and Congress stating that US intelligence officials working to stop terrorist attacks may use techniques banned under international law. This contradicts an Bush’s executive order last summer stating that the CIA would observe international law during detainee interrogations.

Three NYPD detectives on trial for the 2006 fatal shooting of 23 year old Sean Bell were acquitted on Friday. Bell died in a hail of bullets outside of a strip club hours before he was to marry Nicole Paultre. The detectives defended their actions saying that they thought Bell and his two friends were on their way perpetrate a drive-by shooting. None of the victims were armed and no gun was recovered from their car. Bell was shot 50 times. Read More »

In several previous posts I discussed the intense controversy surrounding the upcoming Beijing Olympics. In recent weeks the traditional international journey of the Olympic Torch has served as a flash point for clashes between supporters and protesters.

Ironically, this torch relay was supposed to be the largest in Olympic history—a showcase of international cooperation and sport. Instead, it has become a testament to international outrage over China’s human rights abuses, especially over Tibet.

March 31: A huge carefully scripted ceremony at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square sent the torch off across the globe

April 3: In Istanbul, Turkey, the Uighur expat community staged demonstrations against Chinese persecution of their “brother” expats in Xinjiang. In February 2007, for example, an Uigur activist named Ismail Semed, was executed on the shaky grounds of attempting to “split the motherland” and possessing explosives.

April 6: Massive clashes occurred between Free Tibet protesters and police during the London relay. Thirty-seven protesters were arrested including a man who tried to snatch the torch away from one of the runners. Another tried to put out the torch with a fire extinguisher. Read More »