Where Route 66 begins: A tale of boom, bust, baseball, and a ‘big house’

Editor’s note: This story is part of the Monitor’s summerlong series following old U.S. Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica, California. Just a few blocks from the Old Joliet Prison, Johnny Williams is standing outside a tire shop, waiting for a repair. He’s a lifelong resident of the Joliet area, a father of six … Read more

22 Buddhist monks arrested at airport after record drug bust

Twenty-two Sri Lankan monks returning from Thailand were arrested on Sunday at the main international airport with a record 242 pounds of powerful cannabis, officials said. A Sri Lanka Customs spokesman said the group, returning home after a four-day vacation in the Thai capital, had Kush — a potent, plant-based strain of cannabis — hidden … Read more

Police dog named Hulk sniffs out 48 tons of marijuana in record bust in Brazil

Brazilian police seized a record 48 tons of marijuana in a favela in Rio de Janeiro, uncovered by chance by a sniffer dog during a regular operation against criminal factions. During the operation in the Complexo da Mare, a large complex of favelas in the north of the city, a dog named Hulk indicated there … Read more