Ides or Radioactivity

Good morning, Bayside? For the spiritually or superstitiously inclined, today marks the Ides of March. While the ancient Romans would have felt a sense of foreboding in the middle of March, another culture often expected good luck this time of year. Check back in with Bayside Patch to learn about the mystical history of mid-March. 

In deference to the Roman outlook for today, Tuesday, here are five ways the world has just became a more terrifying place:

1. As thousands of bodies have washed ashore in Japan, officials have run out of coffins and body bags, reports the Post.

2. Following the explosion of a fourth reactor at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, Japanese officials said the emanating radioactivity has decreased to levels that would not be harmful to humans. Earlier in the day the levels may have been high enough to harm people in the area, reports CNN.

3. The International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday that "radioactivity is being released directly into the atmosphere," also according to CNN.

4. A suicide bomber succeeded in killing 36 people near a military recruiting center in Afghanistan, reports the New York Times.  

5. Also sunken in the headlines below horrors in Japan and turmoil in North Africa and the Persian Gulf, 11 Iraqi soldiers were killed by another suicide blast that took place 40 miles northeast of Baghdad yesterday.