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High School Janitor Receives Special Surprise From Students

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Students at Colorado's Arvada High School work together to raise $4,000 for their beloved janitor after his car was stolen.

Photo Credit: KUSA-TV

North Carolina To Repeal HB-2 'Bathroom Bill'

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Lawmakers in North Carolina are ready to repeal the controversial "bathroom bill" after a backlash cost the state jobs and commercial revenue from corporate boycotts and protests. The law, known as HB2, requires transgender people to use restrooms that corresponds with their birth certificate.

These Are the Best and Worst US Airports: Survey

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The worst American airports for traveler satisfaction are some of the country's busiest, according to this year's J.D. Power survey, while some of the best rankings went to popular tourist destinations.

New York's LaGuardia Airport is America's worst large airport, according to the survey, released Thursday, with Newark Liberty, Philadelphia, Chicago O'Hare and Boston Logan international airports, all major hubs, rounding out the bottom five.

On the other end of the spectrum, the best large airports include the local-feeling Portland, Oregon, airport and some sunny tourist destinations. Portland is followed by the international airports in Tampa, Las Vegas McCarran, Orlando and Miami in the top five. San Diego came in sixth.

Portland's regionally symbolic design gives it a unique feel, according to J.D. Power's director of airport practice. LaGuardia's ongoing major rebuild — begun after Vice President Joe Biden compared it to a third-world country — will cause headaches in the short-term but will reduce overcrowding and more efficiently move aircraft onto and off the runways, he said.

New York's airports were all towards the bottom — John F. Kennedy was eighth-bottom in the large airport, just above the hubs in Houston and Los Angeles.

The 11-year-old study ranks terminal facilities, accessibility, security check, baggage claim, check-in and baggage check and food, drink and retail options to determine travel satisfaction.

The across-the-board ratings of baggage claim and food, drink and retail options increased most since the last survey.

Click here to see the entire J.D. Power results



Photo Credit: Getty Images, File
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No Charges for Uber Driver in Fatal Shooting of Robber

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An Uber driver who shot and killed a man who was trying to rob him in Aventura won't be facing charges, police said Monday.

Aventura Police held a news conference Monday afternoon, where they identified the suspect who was killed Sunday as 24-year-old Kevin DeVincent Johnson.

Police said the Uber driver had picked up a passenger and was driving west on the William Lehman Causeway when he was cut off by a Dodge Caravan. The driver of the Caravan, Johnson, jumped out with two guns drawn and attempted to rob the Uber driver.

The Uber driver pulled out his own gun and opened fire on Johnson, who was killed at the scene, police said. The Uber driver had a concealed weapons permit but according to the company's firearms policy, riders and drivers are prohibited from carrying firearms of any kind while in a vehicle and using the app.

"There's no indication at this time that the subjects knew that the victim was an Uber driver at all," Aventura Police Sgt. Chris Goranitis said.

Police said Johnson had committed another armed robbery in Broward an hour before the shooting.

A passenger who was in the Caravan took the wheel and fled the scene before police arrived. The Caravan was later found and police said they're investigating a second person of interest.



Photo Credit: Aventura Police

Majority Pessimistic or Uncertain About Trump: Poll

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As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to be sworn in as the country's commander-in-chief, a majority of Americans say they are either uncertain or pessimistic about his presidency, even as the country is sounding a more optimistic tone about the future of the economy and Trump's ability to bring positive change to Washington D.C.

A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds 54 percent of adults saying that they are either uncertain (25 percent) or pessimistic and worried (29 percent) about how Trump will perform during his presidency, compared with 45 percent with either an optimistic and confident view (22 percent) or a satisfied and hopeful view (23 percent).

That's a significantly worse outlook than Americans expressed after the elections of both Barack Obama and George W. Bush.

A combined 66 percent were either optimistic or hopeful about Obama in January 2009, according to the same poll, while 59 percent were optimistic or hopeful about George W. Bush in January 2001.



Photo Credit: AP

'Gone With the Wind' Returned to Library 57 Years Later

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Barbara Roston was a teenager when she checked out "Gone With the Wind" from the Brooklyn Public Library back in 1959. Fifty-seven years later, she's finally returned it. 

Just recently Roston decided to reread her copy of the book, yellowed and fragile. 

"I somehow flipped to the very back of the book, where, to my horror, I saw the Brooklyn Public Library sticker," she said. 

Josephine Evans was working at the desk of the Crown Heights branch when a sheepish Roston walked in, carrying a book in a bag. 

"She comes to the desk and she explains her story, that she's returning this book from 1959," said Evans.  

Evans said she looked for a barcode on the back to see just how long overdue it was. Instead, there was only a card catalog. 

"Seeing it was a bit of a throwback and just so interesting," said Evans. 

Roston said Evans was "so incredibly excited to see it -- 'oh, my God, this is the relic.'" 

Late fees at the time were just 5 cents a day. Even at that, Evans would have owed a pretty penny had the sum not been waived: at least $1,000. 

The copy is too delicate to return to circulation. It may be displayed as one of the most -- if not the most -- overdue book in the Brooklyn system.

"I must have loved the book that much," said Roston. 

Members who have late fees totaling $15 or more have a chance to pay what's overdue at the library checkout. After all, as Roston found out, tomorrow is another day. 



Photo Credit: NBC 4 NY

Meet a Octogenarian Trapeze Artist

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The fountain of youth may be hiding just above a property off the beaten path in North San Diego County, at least for one San Diego woman.

Betty Goedhart may be 84 years old, but she comes out to Escondido four times a week to fly. Flying being short for flying trapeze.

It's something she wanted to try as a kid, but never got around to.

So, six years ago, at 78-years-old, she made her first trip to Trapeze High outside Escondido. The owner, Dave Ayers, said he gets about 20 to 70 fliers a week, but none compare to Betty.

"She does have the best attitude of anyone who comes out here to fly," Ayers said.

Goedhart hardly looks 84, and she said she feels the same as she did 20 years ago.

"I don't believe it, but when I write it down, I see it," she said.

It could be good genes, she said, or the fact that she has always been active. For the better part of her life, she was a professional ice skater. 

"I don't know if it's a secret, but it's what I say," Goedhart said. "Keep active."

She has spent her golden years skydiving, rock climbing and now flying trapeze. Goedhart has a pretty quick response for anyone who tells her she should not be swinging upside down from a bar 30 feet in the air.

"I think they're wrong and I just hope that maybe I could change some people's mind about that," she said. "And maybe someone will look at this and say, if she can do it, so can I."

Dave Ayers said it's already working.

"All of the people who come here that meet Betty, when they leave they say,' I want to be like Betty,'" he said. "I understand, we don't all have the genetics that she was blessed with and the energy she has at 84. The part that we can emulate is her good attitude."

In the meantime, she continues to show up four times a week, with the energy of a kid and perspective of an 84-year-old.

"I say to myself, I know I can't do this forever," Goedhart said. "So, I really better enjoy it today. And that's kind of how I live my life. I really have come to enjoy every day."



Photo Credit: NBC 7 San Diego

Marine Killed Helping in Crash

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A 29-year-old Marine was struck and killed early Monday while he stopped to help a suspected drunken driver who had been in a rollover crash on the 10 Freeway in Loma Linda, California authorities said. 

Enrico Antonio Rojo, of Ontario, was driving his family to the airport when he stopped at around 1:30 a.m. on the freeway near Mountain View Avenue to help a woman whose vehicle had collided with a tractor-trailer and flipped onto its roof, according to the Redlands Fire Department.

Rojo had told his family he wanted to stop and help the woman, fire battalion chief Jim Topoleski told the San Bernardino Sun

But Rojo was struck by a passing 2017 Hyundai Sonata, according to the California Highway Patrol. The driver tried to steer away but ending up hitting Rojo. 

Officers performed CPR on Rojo, who later died at the scene, according to the CHP.

The driver of the Sonata stopped and cooperated with authorities. 

The driver in the rollover crash was Crystal Adrianna Martinez, 22, of Loma Linda, who was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to the California Highway Patrol. It wasn't immediately clear if she had an attorney. 



Photo Credit: Family of Enrico Rojo

The Year in Photos: 2016

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Photo Credit: Getty Images

What Obama Said to Putin on Red Phone About Hack

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Determined to stop Russia's interference in the presidential campaign, at least one of President Obama's senior advisers urged him to make the ultimate threat to Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. officials told NBC News: Mess with the vote and we will consider it an act of war.

In October, the U.S. used the latest incarnation of an old Cold War communications system — the so-called "Red Phone" that connects Moscow to Washington — to reinforce Obama's warning that the U.S. would consider any interference on Election Day a grave matter.

Part of the message sent over the Red Phone on Oct. 31, according to a senior U.S. official, said: "International law, including the law for armed conflict, applies to actions in cyberspace. We will hold Russia to those standards."

The so-called "Red Phone" system is used to communicate in moments of crisis. Formally known as the Nuclear Risk Reduction Center line, it is no longer a literal phone, and instead sends email messages and attachments.



Photo Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Germany Mourns Berlin Victims; ISIS Claims Attack

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The Islamic State group claimed responsibility Tuesday for Monday's attack at a market in Berlin that killed 12 people. Meanwhile, memorials and vigils were held for the victims.

Photo Credit: AP

Neighbors Honor Md. Man Unable to Make Legendary Christmas Display

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A Maryland man who has created an over-the-top Christmas light display for nearly 30 years is taking a break this year as he fights cancer, but his home won't be short on holiday cheer.

Ted Adleman's neighbors are planning to sing Christmas carols outside his house on Christmas night.

"We asked, 'What can we do to honor him after many years of him doing something for all of us?'" Linda McDonald Hamlett said.

Hamlett grew up in Lanham and invited more than 600 people to sing outside Adleman's house on Christmas Day.

The Adleman family's home on Good Luck Road in Lanham has been bright with light-up reindeer, Santas and gingerbread men for the past 26 years. Generations of Prince George's County residents have grown up stopping to look at the lights every year.

But this year, Adleman, 77, said he is not up to creating the display; he was diagnosed with cancer this year.

Neighbor Sandie MacWelch said going to see the Adlemans' home has been a family tradition for her 14-year-old son's entire life.

"He was 2 weeks old the first time we went," she said.

"It's always been the Griswold house to me," MacWelch said, referencing the blindingly bright lights in "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation."

Hamlett said she is expecting at least a few dozen people to sing at the Adlemans' home at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Christmas Day, on the 9200 block of Good Luck Road.

Next year, neighbors plan to set up the lights for Adleman.



Photo Credit: NBC Washington

Uber Is Reportedly Bleeding Money, But They May Not Care

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Uber appears to be taking its cues for world domination from a gym rat's mantra: No pain, no gain. 

The ride-hailing app has reportedly been hemorrhaging money at a less than ideal rate as it seeks to grow its business and fend off aggressive competition from its chief competitor, Lyft.

"Uber has been been growing dramatically and their ridership numbers have increased quite a bit this year," Mike Ramsey, a research director at Gartner who covers mobility, told NBC News. "As a result of that, to get new drivers, to maintain drivers and to expand into new markets, they are spending a lot more money."

Uber, which is privately held and said to be worth as much as $69 billion, does not disclose its financial statements. But the company is said to have lost a staggering $800 million in the third quarter of this year, and $2.2 billion in the first nine months of the financial year, according to reports from The Information and Bloomberg, which both cited unnamed sources.



Photo Credit: AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File

Qbit Strollers Recalled

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Nearly 30,000 strollers have been recalled due to a defect that poses laceration and fall hazards.

Aria Child recalled their Qbit strollers after 71 reports that the stroller can fold unexpectedly during use, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. There have been 12 reports of bumps or bruises and one of a fractured wrist and elbow due to falls.

Five consumers also reported being pinched by the stroller's hinge mechanism during folding, resulting in the need for stitches.

The recalled strollers are black with an accent color. The “gb” red box logo is printed on the harness and both sides of the stroller legs and “Qbit” is printed on the legs. The model number and manufacture date can be found on a sticker on the rear leg.

The strollers were sold for about $180 at stores including Babies 'R' Us and online at websites including Albeebaby.com and Amazon.com from May 2015 through November 2016.

Consumers should stop using recalled strollers immediately and contact Aria Child at 888-591-5540 from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays or online at www.ariachild.com for a free replacement stroller.



Photo Credit: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Vanity Plate Lands Santa on Naughty List

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A custom license plate has landed an Alabama Santa on the naughty list. Dave Reid, also known as Santa, was baffled when the license plate he'd displayed on his SUV for six years was suddenly deemed offensive when he tried to renew it this year. The tag read "HO HO" and was on a specialty wildlife plate featuring a deer.

Photo Credit: WSFA-TV

Pastor's Home Robbed While He Was Preaching

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While Pastor Justin White and his family were at church Sunday, someone burglarized their Columbus, Indiana, home, stealing about $11,000 in valuables.

Photo Credit: WTHR-TV

Therapy Goats, Polar Bears and More: Wacky Moments From 2016

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NBC's Raphael Seth takes a look back at the lighter side of 2016.

TSA Reveals its 'Top 10 Most Unusual Finds' of 2016

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From a Hello Kitty firearm to a "post-apocalyptic bullet adorned gas mask," you'll never guess what made TSA's list of most unusual finds this year.

Photo Credit: TSA/ @tsa Instagram account

Delta Probes Claim YouTube Star Booted for Speaking Arabic

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A popular YouTube personality with a history of filming pranks and social experiments says he was kicked off a Delta flight for speaking Arabic while on the phone Wednesday.

Delta is investigating the allegation amid criticism from some on social media, who are taking the incident as racial profiling. The airline said more than 20 customers had reported being uncomfortable by the behavior of two men on the flight. It remains unclear what speech actually prompted the complaints.

The video that Adam Saleh tweeted about 6 a.m. ET shows him in a packed airplane with a friend and a flight attendant behind him. There are several people in Delta reflector vests on the plane as well.

"We're getting kicked out because we spoke a different language. This is 2016," Saleh says. "I feel like crying."

Some passengers appear to side with Saleh as he explains what happens, while others in their seats wave and say goodbye, as if happy to see Saleh go.

Delta said in a statement that the incident took place on Flight 1, from London to New York City.

"Two customers were removed from this flight and later rebooked after a disturbance in the cabin resulted in more than 20 customers expressing their discomfort. We're conducting a full review to understand what transpired. We are taking allegations of discrimination very seriously; our culture requires treating others with respect," the statement reads.

Saleh later tweeted that he and his companion are on a different airline's flight to New York, set to land in the afternoon, after speaking with police and going through airport security again.

Saleh has been posting to YouTube for five years, with 3.91 million subscribers and 657 million video views on two accounts.

Wednesday's post went viral, with nearly 200,000 retweets by 10 a.m. Some online are comparing it to an incident from November, when a white man stood up in the aisle of a Delta plane and went on an expletive-laced, pro-Donald Trump rant. He was not removed from the aisle, though Delta later barred him from flying the airline.

"Remember that token statement @Delta made about diversity after the white supremacist WASNT kicked off?" attorney Qasim Rashid tweeted. "This is why I'll never fly Delta."

People have been removed from airplanes for speaking in Arabic before.

In April, an Iraqi refugee who attends the Unviersity of California, Berkeley said he was removed from a Southwest flight and questioned by the FBI after a passenger overheard him speak in Arabic. Southwest said crew members were investigating "potentially threatening" comments. The Council on American-Islamic Relations later filed a federal complaint on the student's behalf.

And while Saleh said he was speaking to his mother before being kicked off the plane, the video posted online does not show what prompted the incident.

"I can assure you that this was not a prank,” a member of Saleh's London-based management team told NBC in an email.

Another YouTube personality who said he was kicked off the plane as well had, a few hours earlier, posted a video that showed him walking up to an English man in what appears to be an airport and asking him in a kind of Arabic accent where the toilet was. The video was captioned "this is too fun," and Saleh retweeted it.

Many of Saleh's videos involve pranks or so-called social experiments. The most watched video on his personal account claims to test whether women are more likely to talk to a stranger on his own or if he has a red Ferrari. In the next most widely watched video, also from 2013, he and a friend repeatedly pray in New York's Union Square to find how people will react.

One popular video they posted, appearing to show a New York police officer stopping and frisking a man in traditional dress soon after watching him walk by in contemporary American clothing, was staged and meant to dramatize racial profiling they see regularly, according to the Huffington Post.

Last week, Saleh claimed he flew in the luggage hold of an Australian plane, though TigerAir refuted it as a stunt prompting dangerous behavoir, the New Zealand Herald reported.

He has posted other videos showing himself on planes. In January, he and a companion put on headscarfs for a flight "since people can wear whatever they want and feel comfortable," he explained.

In the same video, he films himself speaking Arabic with apparent strangers at an airport, and kisses a sleeping stranger as well.



Photo Credit: @omgAdamSaleh / Twitter
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An Ice Castle Rises in Wisconsin

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An ice castle winter wonderland is taking shape in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. What started as a small idea for Brent Christensen and his family has turned into a family activity for all.
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