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Time for The Lieberman Rule By Observer Staff • 12/15/09 2:27pm Just three months ago, Joe Lieberman explained his opposition to a public health insurance option by telling a Connecticut newspaper that he instead favored expanding Medicare—a less cumbersome, more affordable way to extend coverage to some Americans, he claimed. “If you’re 55 or 60 and you’re without health insurance and you go in to try to buy it,” Mr. Lieberman explained, “because you’re older…you’re rated as a risk and so you pay a lot of money.” Maybe you know how this one ended. About a week ago, desperate to win Mr. Lieberman’s vote for health care reform, Senate Democratic leaders tentatively agreed to put the public option on the backburner and to replace it with….an expansion of Medicare that would allow uninsured Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 to buy into the program. Mr. Lieberman responded by praising the Democrats for their willingness to compromise and hailed the proposed Medicare buy-in as a “giant step forward for uninsured Americans.” No, wait. That’s actually not what he said at all. He responded, in outrageous and thoroughly irrational fashion, by bashing the buy-in as a step toward socialism and announcing that he’d filibuster it. Even more outrageous: the arcane rules of the Senate actually encourage Mr. Lieberman’s mindless posturing. The basics of the filibuster are familiar to most: A minority of senators can halt action on just about any legislation before the Senate by extending debate indefinitely, and the only way to stop them is by lining up 60 votes to cut off debate and proceed to a final vote. Many people assume that the filibuster, as maddening as it is, is somehow sacred—a tool that is essential to the Senate’s function and identity without which the delicate balance of power in Washington would be destroyed. But that’s not really true. The rules of the filibuster have actually changed through the years, and so has its application. It used to be that the filibuster was reserved for extraordinary circumstances. Unfortunately, for much of the 20th Century, dozens of senators regarded pending civil rights legislation as an extraordinary circumstance. The filibuster, as Robert Caro details in “Master of the Senate,” was instrumental in keeping even the most elementary civil rights initiative—banning lynching, for instance—from becoming law for nearly 100 years after the Civil War. Otherwise, though, the filibuster wasn’t commonly employed. The main reason for this was that both parties were, until relatively recently, ideologically fluid—racist Southern Democrats like Richard Russell shared a party label with liberal integrationists like Hubert Humphrey and Herbert Lehman, while right-wing Republicans like Homer Capehart (derided by Mr. Caro as “the Indiana Neanderthal”) belonged to the same party as liberals like Margaret Chase Smith. Broad and loose bipartisan coalitions were common and alliances shifted frequently, an inhospitable climate for frequent filibustering. Today, though, party label and ideology are one in the same—a transformation that owes itself, ironically enough, the civil rights triumphs of the 1960s, which gradually turned Southern Democrats into Republicans and (once the Southern-dominated G.O.P. took over Washington) pushed the North’s “Rockefeller Republicans” into the Democratic fold. Bipartisanship in the Senate, as you might have noticed, is now a quaint anachronism. This has made it easy to organize a filibuster. Both parties are now synched up with an ideology and cross-party alliances are rare, so senators no longer worry that joining a filibuster might alienate future legislative partners. Instead of being reserved for extreme circumstances, the filibuster is now an everyday tool of the minority party leader, who can rely—almost always—on the loyalty of his entire caucus. The result is absurd. Sixty votes is now the de facto magic number even for relatively routine legislation—a ridiculously high barrier that forces unreasonable compromises. The need for 60 votes is the reason Democrats were forced to water down this year’s stimulus bill—which, it’s now widely agreed, wasn’t big enough. And it’s why Mr. Lieberman is now getting to live out his revenge fantasy, offering himself as the potential 60th vote for health care reform while demanding one arbitrary concession after another. Filibuster rules have changed before. 67 votes—a two-thirds majority—used to be the magic number to kill one. And reforms in the 1970s exempted any legislation that reduces the deficit from being filibustered. There have been other changes, too—and it’s time for more. Filed under: Joe Lieberman Trending Now

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However, Rolling Stone's French edition publisher Michael Birnbaum is still facing anti-discrimination charges. He reportedly faces up to one year in jail and a fine of up to €45,000 ($62,000) for publishing the quote. The offending remarks came after Dylan was asked about parallels between the 1860s and present-day America: Mmm, I don't know how to put it. It's like . . . the United States burned and destroyed itself for the sake of slavery. The USA wouldn't give it up. It had to be grinded out. The whole system had to be ripped out with force. A lot of killing. What, like, 500,000 people? A lot of destruction to end slavery. And that's what it really was all about. This country is just too fucked up about color. It's a distraction. People at each other's throats just because they are of a different color. It's the height of insanity, and it will hold any nation back – or any neighborhood back. Or any anything back. Blacks know that some whites didn't want to give up slavery – that if they had their way, they would still be under the yoke, and they can't pretend they don't know that. If you got a slave master or Klan in your blood, blacks can sense that. That stuff lingers to this day. Just like Jews can sense Nazi blood and the Serbs can sense Croatian blood. The Croatian community association charged that Dylan was inciting hatred between racial and ethnic groups. Magistrate Marion Potier dismissed the charges. Her reasoning: Dylan didn't give Rolling Stone permission to publish the interview in its French edition. Dylan's remarks came from the same interview when he said the "evil motherfuckers" who screamed "Judas" at him in the 1960s "can rot in hell."Artists In This StoryBob DylanTags In This StoryLegalBob Dylan

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Meghan McCain Commits An Act of Journalism SlateWeigelReporting on Politics and Policy.April 21 2011 2:41 PM By David Weigel Sorry, that headline's a lie. The she throws to Donald Trump in an interview for The Daily Beast. I am focusing on the statements that end in question marks: - "Why do you think you’ve made such an impact already? Why do you think you’re catching on in a way that Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty really aren’t?" David Weigel is a reporter for the Washington Post. Advertisement - "If you run for president, will you hire me for your campaign?" - "Why do you think this birther thing still has such legs?" - "You sent people over to Hawaii to investigate, correct?" - "Did you find anything?" Advertisement - "Are you really ready for this?" - "Have you hired any advisers yet?" - "I want to know, is your family ready?" - "Have you ever stayed at a Holiday Inn?" I am ignoring the large segment of the interview in which McCain tells Trump how exciting she is. At least some of Trump's success so far can be traced to the way the media engages him -- as a celebrity, not a politician who needs to be held accountable for his actions. Honestly, most of the revealing policy statements from Trump were produced 12 years ago when Tim Russert grilled him on Meet the Press and didn't allow him to fluff his way through answers. David Weigel is a reporter for the Washington Post. Load Comments

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Catholic Church Creates Exorcism Hotline December 5, 2012 12:05 AM | TheFW Share on Facebook John Moore, Getty ImagesHave you ever found yourself battling a demon but couldn’t easily locate a priest to help with an exorcism? Well, the Catholic diocese of Milan is here to help with a special exorcism hotline, which will quickly dispatch a priest to deal with the unclean spirit. Finally, an answer to the question, “Who ya gonna call?” According to the diocese’s chief exorcist, Monsignor Angelo Mascheroni, the number of complaints about demonic possession has sharply increased over the past 15 years. “From the number of calls we receive, the need has doubled,” he said. “We get young and old, men and women, people with different levels of education, from school-leavers to graduates.” So, the diocese increased its number of exorcism-trained priests from 6 to 12 and set up a phone number where people can make an appointment to consult with a priest near them. But while Mascheroni says it’s important to keep an eye out for real “diabolical phenomena,” he admits these cases are rare. “Often, parents call me saying that their son or daughter doesn’t go to school, that they are taking drugs or rebelling. There’s no demon there but, at the age of 18, young people don’t want any more limitations. It’s important to be able to discern the different situations,” he said. Still, it’s good to know there’s a phone number for defeating the forces of evil, right? Source: Catholic Church Creates Exorcism Hotline Filed Under: ghosts | religion Category: Weird News Share on Facebook

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OPENERS: SUITS; DYNAMIC DUO By HUBERT B. HERRING In their own ways, Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey are superlative: he has more money than anyone, and she, with a flick of her book-club wand, can sell more books than anyone. So it should really come as no surprise that these two superlative souls would team up, and last week they did, meeting with students at a San Diego high school for a future segment of Ms. Winfrey's show that will focus on Mr. Gates's school-reform efforts (which have included an $11 million gift from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the San Diego schools). But one 16-year-old student, Daejha Toney, was indeed surprised, The Associated Press reported, calling home and saying: ''Dad, you're not going to believe it. Oprah is here.'' Guess that shows which of the two is the real celebrity. HUBERT B. HERRING Inside NYTimes.com Health » Too Hot to Handle

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« Courtney Robertson Continues To Bash Ben Flajnik | Home | Taylor Swift Will Perform At “New Years Rockin’ Eve” » Survivor Philippines’ Jeff Kent: I’m Still Upset About Getting Voted Off November 11, 2012 03:43 PM by Donna W. Martin Jeff Kent lasted only 22 days on CBS’s hit show, Survivor: Philippines, and he’s not happy about being voted off the island. Take the jump to see what Kent had to say about his time on Survivor and what he really thinks about the other players. According to People, Jeff Kent is a retired baseball player but he kept that part of his identity hidden from his tribe mates. “I absolutely cherished it,” he said speaking of the other players not knowing he played baseball. “It was great to go somewhere and not be put on a pedestal. I was happy to negotiate and be told no, and to communicate with these people who were 20 and 30-years-old. I’m a lot like these people.” However, when it was time for Jeff to go, his bitterness came through and he couldn’t help but brag that he had made $60 million playing baseball. When asked about his comment, he said, “I’m a normal guy. I don’t live in a big old mansion and drive Ferraris. I wash my trucks, scout baseball, and go to church. I do all sorts of things that normal people do.” Kent went on to bash Lisa Whelchel saying, “She never played the game. She stood around in groups and during the conversations said, “I’ll do what you tell me to do.” She never once showed in any conversation that she was trying to play the game.” Then he added, “She had no strategy at all.” Little did Jeff know, he wasn’t the only star on this season’s Survivor, Lisa is an actress known for her role on The Facts of Life. But Lisa wasn’t the only one Kent has something to say about. He blamed Mike Skupin for his early departure. “He lied through his teeth to me,” Kent said. “He was a puppy dog through the entire game, really wishy-washy. He said he was on my side, but he really wasn’t. So I blame him.” He continued to spew insults saying, “Abi is ornery; she probably p*ssed off her mother when she was born. Artis is quiet, reserved, and angry. Lisa is naive and isn’t cut out for the game. As for Mike Skupin, we called him ‘Stupin’ for a very good reason. He’s totally clueless.” “These people weren’t playing the game,” Kent said. “They weren’t playing well at all. I got out there and was playing hard, but I think I was the only one sometimes.” “I’m still upset about getting voted off. I hope I can get over my bitterness someday,” Kent said. Wow! What did you think of Jeff getting voted off Survivor? And what about his attitude? Is he justified in the way he feels? Or is he just a poor loser? Post a comment below and let us know what you think about it! Want more? Follow our tweets on Twitter and like us on Facebook!. Click here for more information about Survivor. For other great reality TV news, please feel free to check out SirLinksALot: Survivor Philippines. Photo Credit: CBS Topics: CBS Reality TV Shows, Survivor | « Courtney Robertson Continues To Bash Ben Flajnik | Home | Taylor Swift Will Perform At “New Years Rockin’ Eve” »

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Home > 71-year-old Honesdale man arrested for murder 71-year-old Honesdale man arrested for murder On February 6, 2013 the Wayne County District Attorney Janine Edwards and the Pennsylvania State Police announced the charging and arrest of Robert Jufer, age71, for the murder of his wife, June Jufer. According to the Affidavit of Probable Cause, on October 17, 2010 at 9:40 am a call was received by Pennsylvania State Police,Honesdale Barracks, from a Robert Jufer who stated that he had just returned home from the store and was attacked in his house, rendered unconscious and that when he regained consciousness he went to his neighbor’s home. Responding Troopers discovered the body of June Jufer, deceased, in her bed. An autopsy of June Jufer was performed on October 18, 2010 and cause of death was a shotgun wound to the head and manner of death was ruled homicide. A shotgun was located on the floor near the victim. Subsequent interviews were conducted with Robert JUFER in which he gave conflicting reports of the attack. Additionally, his lack of injury to his neck coupled with physical evidence at the scene did not match the events as he reported them. JUFER went so far as to say he used the murder weapon earlier that morning to “look for a muskrat” near the residence and returned to the home where he placed it on the kitchen table before going to Wal-Mart. He admitted that he did not look for his wife or arm himself with a weapon before fleeing the residence after the alleged attack. A search of the Jufer residence revealed 108 rifles, shotguns and handguns in the home. The weapon located in June Jufer’s bedroom, which was the weapon that killed her, was owned by Robert Jufer. Robert Jufer was charged with one count of Homicide by Pennsylvania State Police Troopers John Decker and Patrick Zirpoli. Jufer was located at his other home in Hastings on the Hudson, Westchester County, New York today and the arrest warrant was served by PSP and Hastings on the Hudson law enforcement. Robert Jufer was taken into custody without incident. He is expected to appear tomorrow before a Westchester County City Court judge for an extradition hearing. District Attorney Edwards stated that the PSP troopers involved in this lengthy investigation did an excellent job at reviewing all the evidence and testing results, conducting numerous interviews and ultimately effectuating the arrest of Robert Jufer. DA Edwards said “This was a despicable crime committed against a helpless wife by a man who behaved as a survivalist keeping over 100 different weapons in his home in Pennsylvania. The evidence collected in the search warrant of the Jufer home, specifically the weapon that killed June Jufer being owned by Robert Jufer, and a piece of rope found in the kitchen which Robert Jufer claimed he was strangled by matching a spool of rope found in the Jufer basement, demonstrates a staged crime scene for a murder committed by Robert Jufer. I have reviewed this case for the twelve (12) months I have been in office and believe the homicide charge filed against Robert Jufer to be appropriate. I would like to thank the Pennsylvania State Police for their diligence and law enforcement in Westchester County, New York for their assistance in today’s arrest without incident.” The filing of criminal charges in not evidence of guilt but simply a description of the charge made by the Commonwealth against a defendant. A charged Defendant is presumed innocent until a jury returns a unanimous finding that the Commonwealth has proven the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt or until the defendant enters a guilty plea to the charges. Source URL: http://riverreporter.com/content/14/2013/02/06/71-year-old-honesdale-man-arrested-murder Links:[1] http://riverreporter.disqus.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Friverreporter.com%2Fcontent%2F14%2F2013%2F02%2F06%2F71-year-old-honesdale-man-arrested-murder

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This Just In Helen Thomas, barrier-busting White House reporter, dies at 92 By DAVID STOUTThe New York Times | July 21,2013 AP File Photo Veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas smiles as she leaves the White House after attending a briefing in October 2007. WASHINGTON � Helen Thomas, whose keen curiosity, unquenchable drive and celebrated constancy made her a trailblazing White House correspondent in a press corps dominated by men and later the dean of the White House briefing room, died Saturday at home in Washington. She was 92.Her death was announced by the Gridiron Club , one of Washington�s leading news societies. Thomas was a past president of that organization.Thomas covered every president from John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama for United Press International and, later, Hearst Newspapers. To her colleagues, she was the unofficial but undisputed head of the press corps � her status ratified by her signature line at the end of every White House news conference, �Thank you, Mr. President.�Her blunt questions and sharp tone made her a familiar personality not only in the parochial world inside the Washington Beltway but also among television audiences across the country.�Helen was a true pioneer, opening doors and breaking down barriers for generations of women in journalism,� Obama said in a statement Saturday. �She never failed to keep presidents � myself included � on their toes.�Presidents grew to respect, even to like, Thomas for her forthrightness and energy, which sustained her well after the age at which most people have settled into retirement. President Bill Clinton gave her a cake on Aug. 4, 1997, her 77th birthday. Twelve years later, Obama gave her cupcakes for her 89th. At his first news conference in February 2009, Obama called on her, saying: �Helen, I�m excited. This is my inaugural moment.�But 16 months later, Thomas abruptly announced her retirement from Hearst amid an uproar over her assertion that Jews should �get the hell out of Palestine� and go back where they belonged, perhaps to Germany and Poland. Her remarks, made almost offhandedly days earlier at a White House event, set off a storm when a videotape was posted.In her retirement announcement, Thomas, whose parents immigrated to the United States from what is now Lebanon, said that she deeply regretted her remarks and that they did not reflect her �heartfelt belief� that peace would come to the Middle East only when all parties embraced �mutual respect and tolerance.��May that day come soon,� she said.Thomas� career bridged two eras, beginning during World War II when people got their news mostly from radio, newspapers and movie newsreels, and extending into the era of 24-hour information on cable television and the Internet. She resigned from UPI on May 16, 2000, a day after it was taken over by an organization with links to the Unification Church.Weeks later, Thomas was hired by Hearst to write a twice-weekly column on national issues. She spent the last 10 years of her working life there.When Thomas took a job as a radio writer for United Press in 1943 (15 years before it merged with the International News Service to become UPI), most female journalists wrote about social events and homemaking. The ones who covered war, crime and politics and congratulated one another over drinks at the press club were typically men.She worked her way into full-time reporting and by the mid-1950s was covering federal agencies. She covered Kennedy�s presidential campaign in 1960, and when he won she became the first woman assigned to the White House full time by a news service.Thomas was also the first woman to be elected an officer of the White House Correspondents� Association and the first to serve as its president. In 1975, she became the first woman elected to the Gridiron Club, which for 90 years had been a men-only bastion of Washington journalists.Thomas was known for her dawn-to-dark work hours, and she won her share of exclusives and near-exclusives. She was the only female print journalist to accompany President Richard M. Nixon on his breakthrough trip to China in 1972.�Helen was a better reporter than she was a writer � but in her prime had more than her share of scoops the rest of us would try to match,� Mark Knoller, the longtime CBS News White House reporter, wrote in a Twitter message Saturday morning.And, he added, �Pity the poor WH press aide who would try to tell Helen, �You can�t stand there.��In the Watergate era, she was a favorite late-night confidante of Martha Mitchell, the wife of John N. Mitchell, Nixon�s attorney general and campaign official.Martha Mitchell told Thomas that responsibility for the �third-rate burglary� at the Democratic headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington and the cover-up that followed it had gone far above the midlevel officials who were implicated early on.People with a vested interest in discrediting Martha Mitchell hinted that she was emotionally unstable and that she drank too much. But volatile or not, she was right. Thomas called Martha Mitchell, who died in 1976, �one of the first victims, and perhaps the only heroine, of the Watergate tidal wave.�On April 22, 1981, three weeks and two days after the attempt on President Ronald Reagan�s life, Thomas and a reporter for The Associated Press interviewed the president, who told them of the �paralyzing pain� he had felt when a bullet went into his chest and of the panic that had overcome him when he could not breathe.In 1971, Thomas married Douglas Cornell, a widower, who was about to retire as a White House reporter for The AP and was 14 years her senior. He died in 1982.Thomas wrote half a dozen books. Her first, �Dateline: White House,� was published by Macmillan in 1975. Four others were published by Scribner: �Front Row at the White House: My Life and Times,� in 2000; �Thanks for the Memories, Mr. President: Wit and Wisdom From the Front Row at the White House,� in 2003; �Watchdogs of Democracy? The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public,� in 2006; and �Listen Up, Mr. President: Everything You Always Wanted Your President to Know and Do,� written with Craig Crawford, in 2009. With the illustrator Chip Bok, she also wrote a children�s book, �The Great White House Breakout,� about a little boy whose mother is president.Helen Thomas was born in Winchester, Ky., on Aug. 4, 1920, one of 10 children of George and Mary Thomas. Her father, who could not read or write, encouraged his sons and daughters to go to college.In 1942, when Thomas graduated from what is now Wayne State University in Detroit as an English major, the country was at war. She went to Washington to look for a job.She found one, as a waitress. But she did not last long. �I didn�t smile enough,� she recalled years later.The Washington Daily News soon hired her for a clerical post, and soon after that she began her career with the United Press news service.��Where�d this girl come from?� � she asked rhetorically in an appearance before a women�s group in 1999. �I love my work, and I think that I was so lucky to pick a profession where it�s a joy to go to work every day.�Before she left UPI in May 2000, the news service had been shrinking its payroll and closing bureaus for years, a decline that led to its takeover by News World Communications, the organization founded by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, leader of the Unification Church. It also publishes The Washington Times, a favorite of conservative readers in Washington.�I do not intend to stay,� she said on departing. �United Press International is a great news agency. It has made a remarkable mark in the annals of American journalism and has left a superb legacy for future journalists. I wish the new owners all the best, great stories and happy landings.�Thomas bitterly opposed the war in Iraq and made no effort to appear neutral at White House news conferences, where some of her questions bordered on the prosecutorial. In �Watchdogs of Democracy?,� she wrote that most White House and Pentagon reporters had been too willing to accept the Bush administration�s rationale for going to war.In an interview with The New York Times in May 2006, Thomas was typically uncompromising and unapologetic.�How would you define the difference between a probing question and a rude one?� she was asked.�I don�t think there are any rude questions,� she said.

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This Just In Vt. town-village merger proposal tabled The Associated Press | October 04,2013 BELLOWS FALLS - A plan to merge the Vermont village of Bellows Falls with the town of Rockingham in 2014 has hit a delay.The proposal would eliminate the Bellows Falls Village Corporation and the Board of Trustees, which would be turned over to the Rockingham Select Board. Village services, such as police and fire departments, would continue to be supported by village residents through separate fees or taxes. The Eagle Times reported that some committee members said the plan doesn't include any details on the financial impact of the merge. It also doesn't specify any benefits for the town or village. Some Bellows Falls trustees felt the plan lacked enough information to bring it to a public hearing. The proposal has been tabled for now.

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« Fatal crash Criminal enticement charge d...» Officials: Wait, see on cleanup SALEM May 11, 2013 Save | Comments (9) | Post a comment | City officials said they want to see what happens with a second housing inspector in place before considering the expense of a curbside citywide cleanup. But they also said they may look into hosting another drop-off event where residents can make some effort to get rid of their junk. The topic was discussed extensively during city council's Finance Committee meeting Thursday night, one day after former city councilwoman Mary Lou Popa pleaded with council about the need for a citywide cleanup where residents can set stuff out to be picked up. The last time the city had a cleanup in 2006, the cost was $11,855. When the Carroll-Columbiana-Harrison Solid Waste District hosted the recent large furniture, electronics and appliances drop-off event for the city and Perry Township, it ended up costing the city $300 for an additional dumpster after splitting the cost with the township. The waste district paid most of the cost of the drop-off event. Committee Chairman Councilman K. Bret Apple said he had mixed emotions about the idea of a cleanup, saying he takes care of his own trash and large items. His concern was if they do it once, people will expect them to do it every year. He said a lot of the areas where problems occur involve rentals and now that they have a second housing inspector, maybe some of that can be handled. Councilman Dave Nestic, another committee member, said he would like to see something done and thought it would be nice to have it done annually, but he didn't realize how much it would cost. Mayor John Berlin pointed out that the cost quoted was from 2006 and the total cost would depend on the number of loads. He said the cost would be indeterminable because they wouldn't know the number of truck loads until it occurs. He said he would like to at least wait a year with the second inspector in place. He also said they're looking at the fines to help subsidize the cost of the second inspector. City Auditor Betty Brothers suggested having another drop-off event, noting the success of the one planned by the waste district. Apple said he would prefer to "look at what a second inspector can do to alleviate this rather than just having people get rid of their clutter." He said if it's to make the city look more appealing, he's all for that, but if it's to help people get rid of stuff, that's something different. Council President Mickey Cope Weaver, who attended the meeting, said the city needs the cleanup. She said it's a great "disservice to the town to have couches and junk on porches" and said some people don't have a way of transporting large items or places where they can get rid of stuff. If the city had kept up with the cleanups, the expense probably would be less. She also liked Brothers' idea to hold a drop-off event, saying she's against the idea of doing nothing. "Is it a matter where they don't have an outlet for it or are we dealing with a character issue?" committee member Councilman Brian Whitehill said. He said most trash companies will take one large item a month and that's 12 in a year. He said they should just have a picker weekend where people can set their stuff out and other people can pick through it and take what they want. "Some people live in filth. They're going to whether there's a cleanup or not," he said. Councilman Jeff Cushman, who attended the meeting, said there's a limit to everything and with a low 1 percent income tax and low water and sewer rates, the citizens receive a lot. He liked the idea of a drop-off event. Whitehill said maybe some service groups could help out with transportation for people who would have a hard time getting items to a drop-off event, or maybe a business would be interested in stepping forward. With a drop-off event, the city could get some cash for some scrap items to help defray the cost. The committee asked the mayor to have city Service/Safety Director Ken Kenst check on costs of holding another drop-off event. In other business, city Fire Chief Jeff Hughes spoke to committee members regarding a leasing program he was told about for fire trucks where the city could possibly put on down payment and pay so much by the month, quarter or year for a new truck. He had applied for a grant last year for a new ladder truck, but the application was denied. His application for an equipment grant was also turned down recently. "I still have a truck I need to get replaced in the near future," he said. He said a new ladder truck would cost anywhere from $800,000 to $1 million. The current truck is 23 years old with a ladder that reaches 75 feet. A new truck could have a reach of 100 feet, which he said is needed with some of the taller buildings in the city. He also said they're starting to have repair issues with the current truck. Berlin asked if he had any idea of the value of the current truck and Hughes said one salesman told him they might be lucky to get $7,000 out of it. The committee suggested he meet with city Auditor Betty Brothers to go over the leasing program and see what their options may be. The committee asked city Income Tax Administrator Fred Pamer to complete an analysis of how the Ohio Municipal League's suggestions for income tax uniformity would affect the city besides how proposed legislation for uniformity would affect the city if approved. Pamer explained that H.B. 5 wants to take away the local control and have decisions made at the state level. He also said there are special interests involved, with businesses pushing for the new legislation that could cost the city some income. He estimated just the one provision alone regarding a net operating loss carry forward of five years could cost the city $250,000 to $300,000 per year in tax receipts. The city relies heavily on income tax receipts for operations. Pamer said other cities are passing resolutions against H.B. 5 and gave the committee samples of resolutions from other cities. Apple said they'll probably want to pass a resolution, but they wanted more information before taking that step. A request by Berlin to have $300,000 moved from carryover to capital improvements for the streets program was tabled for now. Mary Ann Greier can be reached at [email protected] © Copyright 2016 Salem News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Save | Comments (9) | Post a comment | Subscribe to Salem News I am looking for:

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Palo Alto Council To Vote On Pedestrian/Bike Friendly Roadway By Mike Colgan Filed Under: Arastradero Road, Bicycles, Mike Colgan, Palo Alto, Palo Alto City Council, Pedestrians (AP)(AP) PALO ALTO (KCBS)– The Palo Alto City Council will decide Monday night whether to extend a controversial traffic calming trial project. The aim of the project is to slow traffic on Arastradero Road by reducing the number of lanes from four to three. Palo Alto City Councilman Patrick Burt said they wanted to make the roadway more pedestrian and bicycle friendly and encourage children to ride their bikes to school. “For the last 15 years, we have had a very aggressive program to re-promote the use of bicycle riding for kids to school,” he said. KCBS’ Mike Colgan Reports: Some car commuters claim the project creates gridlock. Burt said it could get better this year because schools’ start times have changed. The council is expected to continue the project for at least another year. (© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.) Mike Colgan Mike Colgan, who has worked in Bay Area radio for more than 40 years, has been at KCBS since 1988. Other stops include a 13 year stint at KFRC, then known as the Big 610. Mike is assigned to the KCBS Silicon Valley Bureau. He has covered many of t...More from Mike ColganComments

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first-degree murder Report: Estranged Wife Suspected War Vet Husband In DeathsThe estranged wife of a decorated Iraq War veteran said she had no doubt who law officers should investigate when her mother, stepfather and brother were found shot to death at their rural home.Ex-NFL Player Aaron Hernandez Convicted Of Murder, Gets LifeFormer New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison Wednesday in a deadly late-night shooting, sealing the downfall of an athlete who once had a $40 million contract and a standout career ahead of him.Trial Begins For Man Charged With Killing Teen Girl In 2013Jurors in the trial of a man charged with killing a 15-year-old Seattle high school student in 2013 have heard the anguished screams of friends who called 911 after the girl was shot while walking along a dark road.Documents Detail Victim's Escape Try In Idaho KillingsCourt documents say an Arby's restaurant manager tried to escape a gunman by jumping out a drive-through window before being shot and killed last weekend.Suspect In Idaho Shooting Makes First Court AppearanceA man suspected in the shooting deaths of his adoptive mother and two others in Idaho made an initial court appearance Monday in Washington state, where he was ordered held on $500,000 bail.Teenager Pleads Guilty In Beating Death Of WWII VeteranA 17-year-old pleaded guilty Wednesday to murder in the beating death of 88-year-old Delbert Belton, a World War II veteran who survived the battle of Okinawa but was killed in a robbery outside a Washington state bar in 2013.Murder Charges Filed In Fatal Gas Station Shooting King County prosecutors have filed first-degree murder charges against a 29-year-old man accused of gunning down two gas station employees during a confrontation in the south Seattle suburb of Kent.Cellphone Photos Led Police To Victim's BodyA Pierce County man who reported his girlfriend missing is accused of killing her and dumping her body in Belfair.Renton Man, 20, Reportedly Kills Girlfriend To Keep Her From Leaving For CollegeKing County prosecutors are currently investigating a 20 year-old Renton man whom they believe killed his girlfriend to prevent her from going to college, according to Seattle PI.Arrest In Fatal Shooting Of Spokane BusinessmanA Spokane man has been arrested in connection with the slaying of Spokane businessman Doug Carlile, who was shot by an intruder Dec. 15 at his home in an upscale South Hill neighborhood, police say.Arrest Made In Wash. Drive-By Shooting That Killed TeenA 26-year-old man has been booked into jail for investigation of a drive-by shooting that left a 15-year-old Seattle girl dead.Hooper Bay Man Charged With Woman's Murder A Hooper Bay man was charged with first-degree murder Wednesday in the beating death of his girlfriend in the western Alaska village. Listen Live

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Pangea Today: Their News. Their Voices. Your Language. Jun 16, 2014 by Anita Campbell In Management 2 0 “We want to make people more aware of what’s going on in other parts of the world. And we want to make them excited to hear about another culture.” That’s the goal of Pangea Today, says Nelly Yusupova, head of marketing strategy and technology for the newly-launched news aggregation website. Pangea Today publishes English-language summaries of trending news stories from around the world. The process starts with local country editors, who scan newspapers and online news outlets in their native languages. They summarize key news stories and add context so that non-locals can understand the issues. Then the summaries are published to Pangea Today, in English. Or, as the site tagline says, “Their News. Their Voices. Your Language.” Yusupova, a successful entrepreneur and business owner in her own right, who goes by handle of @DigitalWoman on Twitter, knows firsthand the value of understanding other cultures. A native of Tajikistan, she came to the U.S. 22 years ago. She said, “As a business person, you potentially have customers all over the world. You have to understand your customers and what’s important to them. If you focus only on the U.S. you are leaving out a huge opportunity.” Besides, she adds, learning about world news makes you a more interesting person. “It’s great to go to a networking event and know something about other countries. You will be the star.” The site is the brainchild of Rich Baum. Yusupova describes him as “just a guy with an idea” who managed to enlist others, including Yusupova, in the vision and get it off the ground. They started planning in October 2013. “We started with a hunch,” says Yusupova. “Our hunch was that people felt like news from other countries got filtered by the United States lens. We interviewed people and found out our hunch was true.” They found some angel investors and formed a seed fund to launch. In January they hired a development team and started to build the site. They also started interviewing and hiring local editors at that time. News Without Borders The name of the site comes from Pangea, the supercontinent on the earth 300 million years ago before it broke up into the seven continents we know today. “It symbolizes bringing everything back together, without borders,” said Yusupova. The site covers news from 94 countries, interpreting 28 languages to provide the English summaries. They cover all the world’s main languages. They even cover obscure languages such as Malayalam, Sinhalese and Pashto. The typical news summary article is 150 to 200 words. That may seem short, but the summaries are dense with information — just the facts, ma’am. Each is a fast yet informative read. Each article refers to and links back to the source article in its original language. They also provide a link to a Google-translated version of the article. “While the Google translation is not always clear, reading the summary together with the machine-translated version adds a bit more information for those wanting more,” said Yusupova. Pangea Today publishes 20 to 30 news summaries per day. A lot of the content is evergreen and stories are chosen by the editors for lasting appeal, yet newsworthiness. A Worldwide Team By necessity, the editorial team is scattered around the world and works remotely with one another. Country editors meet long distance via video call. Individual country editors have to coordinate with executive editorial staff. The site prides itself on its editorial standards, and is impressive in its objectivity. The vision for the site is to remain balanced, by reporting the local country take on news, but without an agenda. Local editors are chosen in part for their ability to be objective. After a rigorous interview for a country editor in a middle eastern country, Pangea Today found what they thought the perfect candidate. “He spoke English, clearly knew the local news environment, had knowledge of the cultural context for stories… and then the day we were about to hire him, we found out that he is a spokesman for his government. It really didn’t seem like a big deal to him but it was a disqualifier to us,” said Yusupova. After that experience, Yusupova said they started asking about affiliations during the interview process. A Discovery Engine The site caters to readers with many different interests. One of the groups the site attracts is what Yusupova calls news enthusiasts. “These are people who love to consume news. They love to learn about the world. For them, news is entertainment.” Yusupova added, “I’m a news enthusiast myself.” Pangea Today is built on a WordPress platform, but has a number of custom features and a custom design. The site is designed for “discovery.” It is made for scrolling, especially on a tablet or other mobile device. By design it doesn’t have a search function. But the navigation and structure lets you find content based on your interests, by country or topic. For instance, there are categories for business, economy, technology, people and other topics. There’s also a culture section for books, movies and music. Said Yusupova, “Once you read one article, you read another and another. It’s addicting.” If you want to stay up to date on news around the world, Pangea Today should be your first stop of the day. Images credit: Pangea Today 2 Comments ▼ Anita Campbell - CEO BizSugarLinkedInGoogle PlusFacebookTwitter Anita Campbell is the Founder and Publisher of Small Business Trends and has been following trends in small businesses since 2003. She is the owner of BizSugar, a social media site for small businesses, and also serves as CEO of TweakYourBiz.com. Editor's Picks How Can You Prevent Employee Legal Issues as a Small Business Owner? Getting Work Done: In Groups and Alone The New Intuit Payroll Mobile App Makes Remote Work a Snap 2 Reactions ebele June 16, 2014 at 9:30 am Glad Pangea Today exists. In my view, usually it’s the other way round – there’s English and most people are expected to understand it – or English is translated into another language. I like the idea that this is about news around the world, contributed by a number of people, and that it’s not heavily focused on one area, including the US and UK. News and life happens everywhere. Pingback: This Phone Changes Retail, Federal Contractors Get New Rule How to Hire for Customer Support 5 Tips to Make Your Small Business More Profitable Corporate Social Responsibility: How it Affects Employee Satisfaction How To Become More Focused and Efficient Using These 6 Tips Buying a Franchise Guide Spotlight: Punkpost Updates an Old Communication Method 9 Ways You May Be Missing Opportunities to Build Your Brand Manage Payroll Effectively with Core Employee Solutions

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Posted on: Friday, June 29, 2012 Source: Chron.com - Dane Schiller Five of the Houston area's Top 10 Most Wanted gangsters have already been busted under the new program that uses the Web and digital roadside billboards to seek out tipsters who know the fugitives' whereabouts. The publicity blitz, funneled through stophoustongangs.org, appears to be offering precious few places to hide for the fugitives. They have turned up on Houston area streets, in jail on other charges and in Mexico, where one fugitive was arrested in May in the northern violence-thrashed metropolis of Monterrey. The results seem impressive, considering the most wanted fugitive list was launched in April. Those who have been taken into custody are accused of everything from running large loads of drugs from Mexico to Houston to smacking someone in the face and stealing their glasses and money. Time will tell how good the cases against them are, and if convicted, how much they'll be punished. Tips can be submitted online anonymously, but it is a good bet that spurned girlfriends, wives, gangster rivals and others were only too happen at the chance to click and bust these guys. The Web site features a Top 10, but calls on the public for help in taking in all gangsters. The site has garnered at least 1,136 "public leads," since it started and those have resulted in 280 arrests, according to a counter at the bottom of the page. "This Web site gives people the ability, from the safety and comfort of their own homes, to do something about people they fear and are violent and could hurt someone," FBI spokeswoman Shauna Dunlap said. "The success is a lot greater and quicker than we anticipated." Dunlap said the Web site is proving especially effective at taking down gang members because some members of the public have been fearful of making reports more traditional ways, such as personally contacting police. "Anyone could provide us that information. We have had sons, mothers and fathers turn people in to us," she said of all cases, not just the most-wanted fugitives. She added that since the Web site started, the number of visits has steadily increased and the quality of the information included in tips has improved. The public can also go online to see the status of their tip (denoted only by a code number) and what has happened, such as an arrest made or if it tip has been referred to an investigator. Some of the charges may seem minor league, but these are likely just what cases could be made to get them off the streets - and more hefty matters remain under investigation. Here they are: Johnny Lewis, of the 52 Hoova Crips, is wanted for aggravated robbery that occurred during a home invasion in January 2012. Lewis and another man were forced their way into a home and stole money and a cell phone before they fled. Desmond Deshay Ford is accused of a January 2012 robbery in the 7000 block of Belfort in which he allegedly demanded the victim's money and eyeglasses. Authorities contend he knocked the victim in the head with something hard enough to require hospital treatment. Samuel Rodriguez Hernandez, of the Southwest Cholos, is wanted for robbery at a bus stop in the 6000 block of Glenmont in Houston, in May 2010. Authorities said the victim was waiting for a bus when Hernandez asked him to use his cell phone. Hernandez supposedly grabbed the phone, then hit the victim in the face and ran away. Nathaniel L "Nate" Wiggins, of the 59 Bounty Hunter Bloods, is accused of robbing someone at gunpoint in January 2012.Raul Sergio Madrigal, aligned with the Houstone Tango Blast, remains wanted for conspiracy to distribute to posses with intention to distribute marijuana and cocaine. Madrigal, is charged federally for his alleged role directing the distribution of large amounts of drugs in the Houston area from 2007 to 2009. Here is much more on Madrigal and what makes him stand out. He was arrested in May in Monterrrey, Mexico, but appears to still be in the custody of Mexican authorities. Nathaniel L "Nate" Wiggins, of the 59 Bounty Hunter Bloods, is accused of robbing someone at gunpoint in January 2012

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NO ADVERTISING, GOVERNMENT OR CORPORATE FUNDING Continuous Players My Real News The Real Baltimore March 29, 2013 Why Are People with Health Insurance Going Bankrupt? Dr. Margaret Flowers and Kevin Zeese: Obama care will not put an end to medical bankruptcies - 80% of people going bankrupt due to healthcare costs had insurance Members don't see ads. If you are a member, and you're seeing this appeal, click here Audio I support the Real News Network because of their bravery, integrity, informative and educational - David Pear Log in and tell us why you support TRNN biographyDr. Margaret Flowers is a pediatrician in the Baltimore area and a co-chair of the Maryland chapter of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP). She is also a Co-Director of PopularResistance.org and It's Our Economy. Flowers is currently running as a Green Party candidate for US Senate in the state of Maryland.Kevin Zeese is co-director of PopularResistance.org and It's Our Economy, an organization that advocates for democratizing the economy. He's also an attorney who is one of the original organizers of the National Occupation of Washington, DC. He has been active in independent and third party political campaigns including for state legislative offices in Maryland, governor of California and U.S. president, where he served as press secretary and spokesperson for Ralph Nader in 2004. He ran for the U.S. Senate in 2006 and was the only person ever nominated by the Green Party, Libertarian Party and Populist Party. transcriptPAUL JAY, SENIOR EDITOR, TRNN: Welcome to The Real News Network. I'm Paul Jay in Baltimore.We're now into the beginnings of the implementation of what everybody, including President Obama, is calling Obamacare. So now we have a little better idea of what it is and how it might work.Now joining us to talk about it are two critics of Obamacare. First of all, Kevin Zeese is codirector of It's Our Economy, an organization that advocates for democratizing the economy.And also joining us is Dr. Margaret Flowers. She's a pediatrician from Baltimore who advocates for a national single-payer health care system, or Medicare for all.Thanks for joining us.MARGARET FLOWERS, CODIRECTOR, IT'S OUR ECONOMY: Thank you for having us.JAY: So tell us now. You have been critical about this from the beginning. You were for single-payer during the health-care debate. But now it's passed. It's starting to be implemented. You have a better idea what it is. So how's it looking?FLOWERS: Right. Well, it's looking pretty much like what we expected. Right now the United States is the only industrialized wealthy nation that has a market-based health care system, and the Affordable Care Act moved us further in the direction of a market-based health care system by requiring people who don't qualify for the public programs to purchase private health insurance. That will be going into effect. The exchanges where people will buy that insurance roll out in October of this year. By January 2014, people have to have insurance or face a penalty.But what we're seeing in terms of the type of insurance that people are going to be offered and the trends of what people are actually purchasing right now is we're moving more in the direction of what we call underinsurance, where people may have an insurance plan, but there are significant financial barriers to getting actual care and significant financial risks if someone has a serious accident or illness.JAY: [crosstalk]FLOWERS: Well, what we see, it's interesting. Over the last three years there's been a slowing in the rate of rise of our health-care spending in this country, and it was interesting 'cause the president said in his State of the Union address, oh, the Affordable Care Act is already working; we're seeing our costs slowing. But the actual data shows that our costs are slowing because people are using less health services. The copays and the deductibles that they face mean that they don't have the cash in their hand to go and get those health-care services.And then what we're seeing in terms of bankruptcy—and this is actually based on a study done before the economic crash, based on 2007 data—was that 62 percent of our personal bankruptcies were due to medical costs and illness. Almost 80 percent of those patients had some form of health insurance. If we look at Massachusetts, that's had the same kind of legislation on the state level, the number of medical bankruptcies there is actually rising.JAY: So why is that? If you have health insurance, why are you going bankrupt?FLOWERS: Because they don't cover—well, they have co-insurances, so at some level, you know, they cover up to this level, but after that, your co-insurance is 20 percent, so you have to pay for 20 percent of the services. They can say that services are uncovered services, and so then you're liable for those. They can restrict the networks.So an interesting—out in California, Blue Cross Blue Shield out there, that covers the largest number of public employees, dropped Cedars-Sinai and UCLA from their network because that's where people go when they need actual health care. So if you have a serious problem and that's the place that can treat you, you're going to have to hold a bake sale or sell your home or do something so that you can afford that care.KEVIN ZEESE, CODIRECTOR, IT'S OUR ECONOMY: And Obamacare's going to make this worse, because what Obamacare does is, you know, there's several levels of insurance coverage—90/10, where the insurance company pays 90 percent, consumer pays 10 percent; 80/20; 70/30; 60/40. The subsidy provided by Obamacare to people who can't afford insurance will only cover 70/30 plans. So when you get a serious illness, you're paying 30 percent of the cost of that health care.Now, what's really bad about this is that prior to Obamacare, some of the state insurance regulators were pushing insurance coverers to a higher level, where they would provide more coverage rather than less. Obamacare has now put it into law that 60/40 is okay and 70/30 is what the government will pay for. And so the 80/20 and 90/10's become less common. So you're going to see more and more people with underinsurance and not going to see lack of insurance completely go away. In Massachusetts, which is basically the pilot program for Obamacare—Romneycare was the pilot for Obamacare (it's pretty much the same plan)—what you see up there is only about half of those people who are without insurance got covered by Romneycare. The same is going to happen here. The Congressional Budget Office is estimating 30 million or more people will have no insurance when Obamacare is fully implemented. But those who have insurance are going to now be coming with underinsurance.JAY: And this is all kind of new to me. I mean, viewers of The Real News probably know I'm a dual citizen and I was in Canada until recently, and we don't have any of this, right? It's single, you know—.ZEESE: You have a sensible program.JAY: You have a government health-care plan, and when you're born you get a health card, you show it, and that's kind of the end of it. So now that I—I have not seen this before. The insurance I have down here now, I have a copay, but there's—I think it's, like, a $3,000 cap. After that, the insurance pays 100 percent.FLOWERS: Of covered services. If they say something's not covered—.JAY: Okay. But are you saying that some of this, that copay does not have a cap?FLOWERS: It's not that the copay doesn't have a cap. It's what the insurance companies are able to determine. You know, they'll say that something is not covered, that it's experimental. Or we see this all the time, where they actually charge people for things that are in their plan that they shouldn't be paying for. And if you're not savvy enough to understand that your plan covers that service and then fight for it—. [snip] before 2005, I think, looking at our Blue Cross program here. And what they found was that about one out of every five claims was denied just randomly. Like, if five claims come in, they just pull one out and say, we're not paying this one. And it wasn't based on any rationality. It was just a way of, you know, being able to get more money.And we have evidence of this in New York from people that worked in these claims offices that if there was a certain level area of the city, lower-income area, they would deny those claims because they knew people didn't have the resources to fight back.JAY: [crosstalk] go back to my example, we had—I think it's an 80/20. So our copay—ZEESE: That's good coverage in the United States.JAY: —wasn't so terrible. But, I mean, the final bill had to be in the realm of close to $300,000. If it had been a 60/40, we would have been toast.FLOWERS: Yeah. Yeah.ZEESE: Exactly right.FLOWERS: And the other thing with that is if your babies were born in December and you met that whole, you know, what your out-of-pocket costs were in December and January, you start all over again. And that's where some families just can't handle that.ZEESE: And that's what they're finding in Massachusetts is they're finding that with Romneycare, which was, as I said, the pilot program for Obamacare, they're seeing that people are not going to get health care when they need it, because they know when they go it's coming out of their pocket. And that's not a good thing. When you put off the necessary health care, what that results in is a bigger bill later. You know, if someone's having a problem—.FLOWERS: Or a worse outcome.ZEESE: Or a worse outcome, or, yeah, you—.FLOWERS: You can't work 'cause you're disabled now.ZEESE: Yeah. So it gets more costly by not taking care of the problem at the initial stage. You let it grow and get bigger until you have no choice but to face it. And so in Massachusetts they're finding bankruptcies are continuing at the same level. They're finding only half the people that were uncovered are now covered. And they're finding those who are covered are not getting health care that they need. That's not the kind of health-care system we should have in the United States.FLOWERS: Costs are rising.ZEESE: It's not appropriate.JAY: So where are we at with this, then, in terms of the politics of this? Is there any chance this debate gets reopened in the next two, three years?FLOWERS: That's really up to the people, whether we force it to be opened or not. I mean, it's interesting right now that you have, you know, more kind of these articles coming out in Time magazine looking at our health-care system. And I'm not really sure what's behind that right now, unless they're trying to maybe win the argument by creating it early and, you know, not allowing us to make that argument.But I think what we're going to see over the next couple of years is we're going to see continued rise in our health-care costs, continued poor outcomes, families continuing to face financial barriers to care and bankruptcy. And it's up to us to start saying that, you know, these things are not okay and that there is a real solution. We'd like to join the rest of the civilized world and have a publicly financed health care system.ZEESE: And just to answer your question a little more, there are people in the country who are working on this.FLOWERS: Absolutely.ZEESE: There are. And more and more people are looking at it through the prism of human rights. Health care is a human right. It's not a commodity. We don't want Wall Street health care. We want a human right-based health care. And there are local—there's a Maryland health care human rights campaign. There's—Vermont has one. Oregon. They're in Washington. They're all—coming up all over he country, 'cause people who are looking at how Obamacare is so far being implemented are seeing premiums rise, health-care use going down. They're seeing more problems and they're seeing what happened in Massachusetts. And so people who are aware are organized and getting more organized. So there's ways to get involved in this and reopen this debate.JAY: And are there—given how paralyzed national national politics is on this issue, are there some local examples of where there are some other alternatives? I know in—San Francisco, I believe, has essentially a single-payer—.ZEESE: They have a restaurant tax—FLOWERS: Right, a restaurant tax that pays for that. Yeah.ZEESE: —that pays for health care for people in San Francisco. Vermont has pushed as far as you can, so far, toward a single-payer system. They have a number of steps to get there, but they have a good grassroots campaign that's continuing to push.JAY: So there may be some initiatives at a municipal/state level that might make some breakthroughs here.FLOWERS: Right.ZEESE: But this needs to be a national solution. I mean, really you want to be able to travel throughout the United States and have health-care coverage.JAY: Yeah. In San Francisco, you just leave the city and you've lost your coverage.ZEESE: That's what I mean.FLOWERS: Right. And also, you know, the thing that I often point out is that the United States is already spending more than enough for a universal, comprehensive, high-quality health-care system. We spend two and a half times what the average OECD nation, you know, industrialized nation spends per person on health care. So we have the money to do this and we have the resources to do this, and it's really just up to us to demand that we have the kind of health-care system that we need. And you can't get the cost—that was my point was that you can't get the real cost savings unless you do this at a national level.ZEESE: What I was laughing about was I was thinking about Congress [incompr.] all this craziness about deficit. Health care's 18 percent of our GDP and going up, and you're not going to solve the deficit for the long term without solving health care. And that's not Medicare that's the problem. That's not Medicaid. The problem is the big part of the system, which is the market-based system. Paul Ryan, in his idiocy, pushing toward privatization of Medicare, why he thinks having an insurance company making profit off of elderly people in their health care is going to lower costs is just absurd. It makes no sense. But that's the state of the Congress. And, you know, Obama's even talking about reforms of Medicare that'll make it weaker, in my view. He's done some good things [crosstalk] Medicare Advantage. It was a good move. That's a—Medicare Advantage is a nice name for private insurance, which was ripping off elderly people is what it was really doing. It was not a good part of the elderly health care in our country. So he did some good things on challenging that.But what we're seeing in Congress is no sensible discussion on this issue. We're seeing them push in the wrong direction toward more privatization, more cost, higher percentage of our GDP, and more deficit, and less health care for American people.FLOWERS: But the answer is simple, and as long as the people understand what it is that we require and we don't settle for anything less,—JAY: Which is Medicare for all.FLOWERS: —which is Medicare for all, then we can push in that direction and do it.JAY: Alright. Okay. Thanks for joining us, Margaret, Kevin.FLOWERS: Thank you.ZEESE: Thank you.JAY: And thank you for joining us on The Real News Network.EndDISCLAIMER: Please note that transcripts for The Real News Network are typed from a recording of the program. TRNN cannot guarantee their complete accuracy. Our automatic spam filter blocks comments with multiple links and multiple users using the same IP address. Please make thoughtful comments with minimal links using only one user name. If you think your comment has been mistakenly removed please email us at [email protected] Why Austrians Nearly Elected a Far Right Candidate as President Unions and the Sanders/Clinton Split (2/2) Democratic Nomination Battle is Not Over Yet Will Sanders Appointees Shake Up the Convention? 'The Law Has Always Been in the Favor of Law Enforcement' Officer Edward Nero Found Not Guilty of All Charges Over Death of Freddie Gray Bernie Sanders and the Widening Political Spectrum Austria Narrowly Elects Former Green Party Leader as President, Avoids Far-Right Candidate The Empire Files: 100 Years of US Troops as Lab Rats By Ignoring Fossil Fuel Extraction, the Paris Agreement is Doomed to Failure The Occupation of the American Mind - RAI with Pink Floyd's Roger Waters (3/3) Erdogan Targeting the 59 Pro-Kurdish HDP Parliamentarians with 445 Police Investigations Climate Change-Fueled Droughts Pushing Africa to the Brink The Financial Invasion of Greece Judge to Hand Down First Verdict in Freddie Gray Case on Monday Move to Amend and the Fight to Remove Corporate Money From U.S. Elections Baltimore Activists Defend Tubman House Against Threats of Demolition Ultra-Nationalist Avigdor Lieberman Accepts Post as Defense Minister of Israel Sanders and Class Struggle in the Democratic Party Baltimore Public Defender: Questionable Arrests Still Clog the Court System Wilkerson on Heightened Tensions in the South China Sea The Real News of the Day - May 19, 2016 How One Arrest Could Change the Culture of Policing in Baltimore #FreddieGray Case Spurs Activism and Action in Baltimore Classrooms Successful Swiss Addiction Treatment Program Ignored by U.S. Congress Washington, D.C. Echoes a Growing Call to #KeepItInTheGround Col. Wilkerson: All War Games Between China and US Lead to Nuclear Attacks TheRealNewsNetwork.com, RealNewsNetwork.com, The Real News Network, Real News Network, The Real News, Real News, Real News For Real People, IWT are trademarks and service marks of Independent World Television inc. "The Real News" is the flagship show of IWT and The Real News Network. All original content on this site is copyright of The Real News Network. Click here for more Problems with this site? Please let us know

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Fireworks Sales Boom As Authorities Struggle To Fireproof July Fourth by Ari Phillips Jul 4, 2014 10:16 am CREDIT: flickr/ Major Clanger The Fourth of July ushers in the dog days of summer. This is great for backyard grilling and swimming pool outings, but also aligns well with some of the starker impacts of climate change — heatwaves, drought, and wildfires. Setting off fireworks, a treasured Independence Day ritual, happens to be an extreme liability when it comes to sparking an unwanted burn. But with over 15,000 official displays and hundreds of thousands of more independent efforts, fireworks also provide cheap thrills and economic gains to communities across the country. While the drought-ridden West is taking extra precaution to prevent fires, the fireworks business is booming nationally. This, according to Julie Heckman, executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association (APA), the leading trade association of the fireworks industry. In recent years we actually saw a relaxation of fireworks restrictions due to the slow economy. “Sales of fireworks have dramatically increased over the last decade,” Heckman told ThinkProgress. “In recent years we actually saw a relaxation of fireworks restrictions due to the slow economy. Cities and towns got tired of losing tax revenue.” The APA predicts sales of consumer fireworks will exceed $675 million in 2014, an all-time record — one helped along by the holiday falling on a Friday. Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York have banned all public access to fireworks. Other states have their own guidelines, with California being one of the strictest. The only fireworks legally permitted in the state are ones that don’t launch into the air or explode, otherwise referred to as “safe and sane” fireworks. However, just because they are safe and sane doesn’t mean everyone will find them fun and desirable. More than 175 tons of illegal fireworks have been confiscated in California so far this year, a perennial problem made worse by the especially tinderbox-like conditions. People are going to use fireworks on the Fourth of July whether they’re legal or not. “People are going to use fireworks on the Fourth of July whether they’re legal or not,” said Heckman. “They will cross state or county lines to get them. This is an American tradition — people want to celebrate their independence with consumer fireworks. We just hope Mother Nature cooperates on the Fourth of July.” The drought of 2012 really put a damper on fireworks sales, but so far this year has been better for the industry. However with much of the Western United States caught up in an enduring drought — especially the Southwest between Texas and California — tamping down fireworks displays has become the new normal in many places. Drought and heat aren’t the only weather conditions impacting the sale and use of fireworks. Hurricanes and other extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change can deter people from going all out in their Fourth of July displays. With the first hurricane of the season, Hurricane Arthur, bearing down on the east coast tourism plans could be upended. Not only may fireworks go un-purchased and unused, but local businesses expecting a weekend boom may have to settle for something less memorable. Differing Approaches In The West In Texas, El Paso County has banned the purchase, use, and possession of fireworks by residents for the fourth consecutive year. Professional displays put on by cities are not banned as frequently as they generally have supervision by firefighters and are put on by professional pyrotechnicians. Texas has banned public fireworks displays recently — In 2011, Austin cancelled fireworks for the first time in 35 years due to a historic drought gripping the state. Just across the border in New Mexico, Doña Ana County has banned the use of all fireworks within areas that are covered wholly or in part by timber, brush or native grass. Fireworks can only be used in paved or barren areas with readily accessible water. Dan Ware, a spokesman for the New Mexico State Forestry Division, said that nearly 90 percent of the 231 fires reported on state and private land so far this year have been caused by people. There are fireworks bans and restrictions in remote and urban areas throughout the state and violations in parts of the state could result in jail time and fines, with authorities implementing a zero tolerance policy. Fireworks account for two out of five of all reported fires on July Fourth according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and in 2011 fireworks caused an estimated 17,800 reported fires. After one of the driest winters on record, all of California is currently in severe drought with most of the state experiencing extreme or exceptional drought. Having already responded to over 2,500 wildland fires this season, about 55 percent higher than an average year, fireworks bans are in place across the state, especially in state forests. On top of lower-than-average rainfall for consecutive years, summers in the Southwest are also heating up due to climate change — and at a rate faster than the rest of the country. According to a recent Associated Press analysis, the average Arizona summer is now 2.4 degrees warmer than in 1984, giving it the fourth fastest summertime increase among the lower 48 states. In New Mexico summer is 3.4 degrees hotter. Texas summers are 2.8 degrees hotter. How To Handle Such A Hot Issue Governors in the Southwest are approaching the issue of weather and risk versus ritual and economy in different ways. In New Mexico, Gov. Susanna Martinez is urging leaders around the state to consider limiting or banning fireworks even after the legislature failed to pass a law to give cities and counties more authority to ban fireworks when fire danger is high. Last year Gov. Martinez banned all campfires and fireworks on state land during a more severe drought over the July Fourth holiday. The law requires requires local jurisdictions in the highly populated Maricopa and Pima counties to allow fireworks. In Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer recently signed a bill requiring the highly populated Maricopa and Pima counties to allow the sale and use of fireworks for several weeks around the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve. In a compromise, the bill also allows the 13 other more rural countries across the state to impose their own ban restrictions. Under the formal law, cities and towns across the state had to allow fireworks for just a few days during those two holidays. “It does not make sense that a state that is so dry, that has had so many catastrophic fires in last decade, would want more flammable materials,” Dale Wiebusch, legislative associate for the League of Arizona Cities and Towns, told ThinkProgress. Wiebusch’s organization, a member-based group representing over 90 cities and towns in Arizona opposed the bill because the overall impact will create more opportunities for fire. The Arizona Fire District Association and the the County Supervisors Association also opposed the bill. Phantom Fireworks, a major fireworks wholesaler based in Youngstown, Ohio, was in favor of it. Wiebusch said lobbyists from the fireworks industry have been pressuring the Legislature to pass a similar bill for years. Fireworks were illegal in Arizona until 2010 when Gov. Brewer signed a bill that legalized sparklers and fireworks that don’t explode or go into the air. Previous governors had vetoed several versions of that bill in the 1990s, and Gov. Brewer cited the threat of wildfires in vetoing a similar 2009 version. “I think the rural legislatures thought their districts would have more control with this compromise,” said Wiebusch. “What they didn’t take into account was that people can still drive 90 minutes or whatever to Phoenix, buy fireworks, and bring them back.” Wiebusch said that late June and early July are the high fire-danger times in Arizona, before monsoon season kicks in with regular afternoon showers. Having been at his job for eight years, he said he’s seen an uptick in fireworks displays being cancelled due to fire hazard, saying “we’ve been in drought for over a decade, we’re already a dry state, now we’re even drier.” DroughtFireworksFourth Of July

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Paula Deen Offers New Apology Paula Deen made a big return to the spotlight on Sunday after seeing her career derailed last summer amid a racial slur scandal. As reported at the time, the celebrity chef’s Food Network show was canceled and a number of endorsement deals were lost after she admitted to using the N-word in the past. After taking the stage this weekend at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival in front of hundreds of fans, Deen admitted, “We have come off of a very hard summer my family and I, my team, my partners.” “But you know, I have heard on more than one occasion … that I’ve never apologized. So if anybody did not hear me apologize, I would like to apologize to those who did not hear me,” she said. Spectators in the crowd reportedly yelled out that Deen had nothing to be sorry for. She told the group, “Ya’ll’s cards and letters that I got helped me get out of bed every day,” adding, “I am not a quitter.” Deen also received some on-stage advice from former colleague Robert Irvine. “This is a warning to you,” he reportedly told her. “You’ve apologized. You’ve eaten crow. You’re done. Don’t do it anymore.”

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Volunteer pilots make rescue delivery to Ocean State POP UP PUPPY: Two puppies peak out from a cardboard box after being unloaded from their Pilots N Paws rescue flight on Sunday. Kim Kalunian LIFE SAVED: Avery Pellnat, who served as the co-pilot for a Pilot N Paws flight that rescued 13 dogs this weekend, marveled at the tiny size of the 4-week-old puppies he saved. TO THE RESCUE: Eleven puppies made their way from death row in North Carolina to a foster home in Rhode Island on Sunday thanks to a Pilots N Paws rescue flight. From left are: East Greenwich Animal Protection League President Tammy Flanagan; pilot Bruce Cohen; co-pilot Avery Pellnat; and Dave Goudailler, a Quonset Airport line service technician. Kim Kalunian Posted What has 56 legs, four arms and flies through the air? A Pilots N Paws rescue flight, of course. On Sunday, pilot Bruce Cohen and his co-pilot Avery Pellnat delivered 13 dogs (two adults and 11 puppies) to Quonset Airport in Cohen’s single-engine private plane. Cohen and Pellnat volunteered their time to transport the dogs from a high-kill shelter in the south to the East Greenwich Animal Protection League right here in Rhode Island. Pilots N Paws was founded in 2008 through a partnership between animal lover Debi Boies and pilot Jon Wehrenberg. Wehrenberg had volunteered to fly a Doberman from Florida to South Carolina in order to save the dog from euthanasia at a kill shelter. The trip was a success, and the pair brainstormed the idea for Pilots N Paws, which now has thousands of volunteers across the country and saves as many animals each year. The East Greenwich Animal Protection League (EGAPL) has used the Pilots N Paws service three times before, with flights landing at both Quonset Point and T.F. Green. Sunday marked their fourth Pilots N Paws rescue. The dogs, including 11 four-week-old puppies, were on death row in North Carolina, until a rescue organization reached out to EGAPL in an attempt to save their lives. When EGAPL agreed to take the pups, just one thing stood in their way: distance. Fortunately, a volunteer helped EGAPL coordinate the dogs’ trip through Pilots N Paws, reaching out to pilots across the East Coast to see who was available and where they could fly to and from. The dogs initially made their way from North Carolina to Maryland, which was where Cohen and Pellnat entered the picture. The pair work together at the Duchess County Airport in New York, and although they knew each other, they had never flown together before. Pellnat had just received his instruments license, and was looking for the perfect occasion to take his first flight as co-pilot. Cohen thought his Pilots N Paws mission would be perfect. So at 9 a.m. on Sunday morning, the pair made their way from Poughkeepsie, N.Y. to Maryland, and then from Maryland to Rhode Island. The flight arrived at about 4 p.m. at Quonset Airport, and the pair immediately began unloading their precious cargo. Puppies poked their heads out of cardboard boxes and checked out their new surroundings as their mom hopped from the plane’s cabin. Everyone appeared to be in tip-top shape. “It’s exhausting and incredibly rewarding,” said Cohen as he relaxed in the FBO lounge once the dogs were unloaded. Cohen has been a pilot for about five years and has been volunteering his time to organizations like Pilots N Paws since he got his license. The Pilots N Paws program is well known among pilots, and Cohen said their website provides a great network for connecting pilots with rescue organizations and missions. “It’s like E-harmony for pilots,” said Pellnat with a laugh. Cohen said there’s a regional component to the program, since the small planes can only make short trips. He said about 90 percent of the animals he flies come out of high kill shelters in the southern states. Seventy percent of the dogs that enter southern shelters are euthanized, and 4 million unwanted pets are euthanized nationwide each year. “It’s a lot more rewarding to fly with a mission with a purpose,” he said, noting that he also flies for Patient AirLift Services and Angel Flight, Inc. Pilots by nature love to fly, said Cohen, so flying with purpose makes the experience even more enjoyable. “We like to fly missions that have some sort of a humanistic component to them,” he said. A lot of his fellow pilots have been making flights to areas hit hardest by Hurricane Sandy, bringing much needed supplies with them. The other bonus of flying for charitable organizations is the in-kind donation he is able to make; the cost of the flight is then tax-deductible, which makes the trip practical and cost-efficient. For Pellnat, who had never taken part in a Pilots N Paws rescue mission before, the experience was unique and exciting. “It was great,” he said. “It was really rewarding. It was just really good knowing they’re going to a good home while I’m having fun.” And there were no problems along the way, since all of the dogs were on their best behavior when in the air. “Dogs love flying in the plane,” Cohen said. Cats, on the other hand… “Cats don’t like flying as much as dogs,” he said. “Cats don’t like anything,” laughed Pellnat. Cohen said he has made dozens of Pilots N Paws trips, though 13 breaks the record for the number of dogs he has transported at a single time. Cohen not only has a soft spot for animals, he’s got a special place in his heart for Rhode Island, too. Cohen spent his honeymoon in Charlestown and was in Narragansett during Hurricane Bob. He’s been visiting the Ocean State for 31 years and spends every summer in South County. “The only regret I have is that I can’t rent a car and go down to Point Judith and go down to Champlin’s and have a bunch of lobster,” he said with a smile. After a brief respite in the FBO, Cohen and Pellnat headed back to Poughkeepsie, a journey Cohen wagered would take about an hour and 20 minutes, since the headwind was strong. As for the dogs, they’re now in a foster home, where the puppies will stay until they’re weaned from their mom and can be brought to the shelter for adoption. Unlike the shelter they came from in the south, EGAPL is a no-kill rescue league. Thanks to Cohen and Pellnat, all of the dogs have a new lease on life. For information on how to adopt one of the Pilots N Paws rescue dogs or another animal from EGAPL, visit www.egapl.org or find them on Facebook at the East Greenwich Animal Protection League. The league holds adoption hours every Sunday at the Greenwich Bay Animal Hospital from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

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Batavia Morning News Dan Fischer posted on December 28, 2012 07:16 Funerals are set this weekend for two volunteer firefighters shot and killed while responding to a fire on Christmas Eve. People in Webster and around the country have been calling area hotels, offering to pay for hotel rooms and meals for the thousands of out-of-town firemen coming in for the funeral. Jamie Dengal is Sales Director for a Hampton Inn in Rochester: "It's an outpouring of the community, the nation itself. We've had people from Florida, Michigan calling in to donate hotel rooms for the firefighters coming in this weekend." Carl Bellanca is one of the many donating a hotel room: "Everyone is trying to come up with things to do to really help everybody get through this horrible tragedy." Authorities say arrests are imminent in connection with the killing of two firefighters in Webster. One or two women are likely to face criminal charges for allegedly helping gunman William Spengler acquire the guns used in the attack. Sources say one of the women is a former neighbor of Spengler. Spengler killed himself after fatally shooting the two firefighters Christmas Eve. A Darien man picked up his third DWI and is now facing multiple felony charges. 30-year-old Darryl James is facing eight different charges ranging from felony drunk driving to resisting arrest. The alleged incident occurred in the Town of Bennington on Christmas Day. James was committed to Wyoming County Jail on 25-thousand dollars bail. The unemployment rate in Genesee County inched up just a bit. Figures just released by the State Department of Labor show Genesee County’s jobless rate for November at 7.4 percent, up from 7.2 percent in October. See numbers HERE for Genesee, Wyoming and Orleans Counties A Wyoming County native has signed with the Bills. 23-year-old Derek Buttles is a 2007 Letchworth High School graduate who went on to play Division I football at the University of Maine. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound tight end was signed to the practice squad. As a Maine Black Bear, Buttles earned second-team All-Colonial Athletic Association honors in 2010 after catching 27 passes for 291 yards and a touchdown. He will wear Number 88.

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BP Settlement Of Little Comfort To Some, A 'Down Payment' To Others By Debbie Elliott Nov 15, 2012 ShareTwitter Facebook Google+ Email June 2010: A boom floats in the water as contract workers from BP use skimmers to clean oil from a marsh near Venice, La. Originally published on November 15, 2012 6:36 pm There's mixed reaction this afternoon to the news that BP has agreed to a deal with federal authorities to pay $4.5 billion in criminal and civil penalties related to the 2010 Gulf Oil spill. Massachusetts Rep. Ed Markey, the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, calls the fines and penalties appropriate. "People died, BP lied to Congress, and millions of barrels of oil poured into the Gulf," he says. "This steep cost to BP will provide the Gulf coast some of the funds needed to restore the region, and will hopefully deliver some comfort and closure to the families and businesses affected by the spill." But the news is little comfort to some families. Baton Rouge attorney Chris Jones lost his 28-year-old brother, Gordon Jones, in the Deepwater Horizon explosion. He says BP has never apologized to his family, and is only cutting a deal with the federal government to resume business. "I just want Gordon back but that's not going to happen," Jones says. "Unfortunately all BP has to do is write a check and they're back in operation." On the Gulf Coast, the settlement comes as a reminder of what the region suffered, both economically and environmentally when BP's blown-out Macondo well spewed uncontrolled for nearly 3 months. "You would want to think it was really just an accident," says Mike Voisin, a seventh-generation Louisiana oysterman who chairs the Gulf Seafood Marketing Coalition. "But if things happened that were criminal than it makes it maybe more than just an accident." Voisin says it's a relief that federal prosecutors are holding BP accountable, and says all the parties should work diligently to make sure a disaster of this magnitude never happens again. Today's agreement only covers federal criminal charges and civil charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission. BP remains in talks with the Justice Department and state governments to resolve a civil lawsuit that could lead to billions of dollars in additional fines and charges under the Clean Water Act and Oil Pollution Act. Larry Schweiger, president of the National Wildlife Federation, calls the criminal settlement "a good down payment" on restoration of the Gulf and its communities. "We look forward to working toward a full settlement that will not only hold BP and all other parties responsible for the devastation of the Gulf oil disaster, but deter future violations by sending a clear message that America holds reckless polluters fully accountable," he says. In Alabama, where beaches were oiled and the state's tourist industry suffered a financial blow, Attorney General Luther Strange says he's still preparing to press the state's case that BP was grossly negligent. "BP's criminal acts levied economic and environmental damages of historic proportions upon Alabama, and these damages are not covered under today's agreement," Strange says. A New Orleans federal judge has set a February trial date for the federal and state civil claims against BP. Separately, the company has agreed to pay an estimated $7.8 billion dollars to settlement economic and medical claims brought individuals and businesses affected by the oil spill. (NPR's Debbie Elliott is based in Alabama. Click here to see some of her reports on the Gulf Oil Spill.)Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/. View the discussion thread. © 2016 WHQR

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No more mail at your door? Delivery changes eyed WASHINGTON (AP) – Door-to-door mail delivery is about as American as apple pie. With the Postal Service facing billions of dollars in annual losses, that tradition could be virtually phased out by 2022 under a proposal in Congress. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday approved a plan to move to cluster box and curbside delivery, which includes mailboxes at the end of driveways. The proposal is part of broader legislation by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the oversight and government reform panel, designed to cut costs at the cash-strapped agency by up to $4.5 billion a year. The Postal Service had a $16 billion loss last year. The bill was approved on a party-line vote, with 22 Republicans supporting it and 17 Democrats opposing it. Postal Service spokesman David Partenheimer said the agency would evaluate Issa’s bill based on whether it would enable the agency to make $20 billion in savings by 2017. “The Postal Service looks forward to working with Chairman Issa and the committee to improve the bill as it makes its way through the legislative process,” Partenheimer said. The agency has been moving toward curbside and cluster box delivery in new residential developments since the 1970s. The Postal Service in April began deciding whether to provide such delivery for people moving into newly built homes rather than letting the developers decide. “A balanced approach to saving the Postal Service means allowing USPS to adapt to America’s changing use of mail,” Issa said. “Done right, these reforms can improve the customer experience through a more efficient Postal Service.” About 1 in 3 mail customers has door-to-door delivery, Issa said. The shift would include safe and secure cluster box delivery areas, he said, especially for elderly customers who receive Social Security checks and prescriptions through the mail. About 30 million residential addresses receive delivery to boxes at the door or a mail slot. Another 87 million residential addresses receive curbside or cluster box delivery. The cost differences are clear. Curbside delivery costs average $224 per year for each address, while cluster box delivery averages $160. Door-to-door delivery costs the agency about $350 per year, on average. Sue Brennan, a Postal Service spokeswoman, said, “While converting delivery away from the door to curb or centralized delivery would allow the Postal Service to deliver mail to more addresses in less time, doing so is not included in our five-year plan.” Brennan said the agency’s five-year plan does call for shifting 20 percent of business address deliveries from door-to-door to curbside and cluster box delivery through 2016. Rep. Steve Lynch, D-Mass., said the plan to move some 30 million residential addresses from to-the-door to curbside and cluster box service would be virtually impossible in dense urban areas such as his hometown of South Boston crowded with triple-deckers – three apartments stacked on top of each other. “You’d have to knock houses down in my neighborhood to build cluster boxes,” Lynch said. “This will not work.” It might work in places like Manhattan with big apartment buildings, he said. “Look, there’s no availability for cluster boxes in many communities around the country,” Lynch said. Issa’s plan allows for people with physical hardships to get waivers allowing them to keep door delivery. There’s also a provision giving people the option to keep door delivery by paying a special fee to cover the additional cost. Issa’s bill also allows the Postal Service to take into account factors such as poverty rates and population density in deciding which areas would be allowed to keep door delivery. The financially beleaguered Postal Service, an independent agency, gets no tax dollars for its day-to-day operations, but is subject to congressional control. The Postal Service is pursuing a major restructuring throughout its retail, delivery and mail processing operations. Since 2006, it has reduced annual costs by about $15 billion, cut its workforce by 193,000 or 28 percent, and consolidated more than 200 mail-processing locations. The service’s losses are largely due to a decline in mail volume and a congressional requirement that it make advance payments to cover expected health care costs for future retirees. About $11.1 billion of last year’s losses were due to payments for future retiree health costs. The volume of mail handled by the Postal Service has decreased steadily as the popularity of email, Facebook and other electronic services has grown. Total mail volume handled by the agency fell to 160 billion pieces last year from its all-time high, 213.1 billion in 2006. Revenue fell to $65.2 billion last budget year, from a high of $74.9 billion in 2008. The Postal Service is considering several options to fix its finances, including negotiations with unions to reduce labor costs and another possible increase in prices. The service earlier this year backpedaled on its plan to end Saturday mail delivery after running into opposition in Congress. It has tried repeatedly and unsuccessfully over the past several years to persuade Congress to approve ending Saturday mail delivery and to free the service from the advance health payments. Issa’s bill would end Saturday mail delivery, but keep six-day package delivery. The Senate last year passed a bill that would have stopped the Postal Service from eliminating Saturday service for at least two years and required it to try two years of aggressive cost cutting instead. The House didn’t pass a bill. Related Posts Tax deadline delayed until April 18 More than 100,000 pounds of food collected during “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive Dropping stamp prices are good for your family, bad for the post office Philadelphia row house collapses, injuring 8 Massive explosions rock central Fla. gas plant

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Obama And Al Sharpton: An Odd Couple Who Make Political Sense By Frank James Apr 10, 2014 ShareTwitter Facebook Google+ Email President Obama and the Rev. Al Sharpton together at the 2011 National Action Network conference. Frank Franklin II President Obama and Rev. Al Sharpton might at first seem like one of the odder couples in U.S. politics. The president is by nature a super-cautious politician, measured in his rhetoric. He has generally stayed away from overt discussions of race for much of his presidency, though he has spoken more openly and emotionally about issues of race during his second term. Sharpton, on the other hand, built a career as an incendiary racial avenger who for decades was drawn to interracial controversies as if they had some irresistible gravitational force. On Friday, the two men are scheduled to be together when the president delivers a speech to the National Action Network, a civil-rights group Sharpton founded in 1991. Obama spoke previously to the group in 2011. For both men, there's a symbiosis that comes from sharing the same stage. By using Sharpton's platform, Obama can be fairly certain his message will be amplified by the civil-rights leader to the African-American audiences of his nationally syndicated radio show and MSNBC. For Sharpton, it's just another signal of how complete his self-reinvention has been from outside agitator to inside player. "It's a validation of the importance of the organization and its leader," Ben Jealous, former leader of the NAACP, the nation's oldest and largest civil-rights organization, told It's All Politics. "Rev. Sharpton has proven himself the most consistently evolving, populist leader in our country. He has throughout the decades gained the respect and trust of more and more people in our country and has become a figure who more and more people across the spectrum understand has to be reckoned with." The NAACP under Jealous hosted an Obama speech in 2009. Having any president, but particularly the nation's first African American president, speak at a civil rights organization's convention is "an extreme honor and it will be an extreme honor for the reverend and the National Action Network to have President Obama," Marc Morial, the president of the National Urban League and former New Orleans mayor, told It's All Politics. Morial hosted Obama twice when the president has spoken at the Urban League twice. "There's a symbolic importance, that the president has a direct relationship with the nation's civil rights leadership," Morial said. "Number two, there's a substantive importance because it's a chance for him to talk to what, in many respects, are his most loyal followers and constituents about his agenda about the issues he's working on. "Thirdly, it has a historic importance because for many of the people who will be in the audience, it may be the only time in their life that they are in the room and see a president in person, maybe the only time in their life they see President Obama in person. This is part of a very important and necessary outreach." Morial, who plans to attend Obama's NAN speech, suspects the president will deliver an election-year message on the importance of voting, especially for African-Americans who, like several other voter groups, experience dramatic declines in voting during off-year elections. That's an especially crucial message at this stage of Obama's presidency. Obama's only hope of not having his remaining agenda "blockaded" any more than it already is, Morial said, is to keep the Senate in Democratic control. Meanwhile, urging African-Americans and other minority voters to get to the polls this year in the greatest numbers possible can help counter Republican efforts in many states that have made voting more difficult. "We need a strong vote to send a message that we're not going to allow democracy to be frittered away," Morial said. It's not just good politics for the president to attend the convention of Sharpton's group, according to Morial and Jealous. It's also a chance for the president to get back to his roots. "I suspect the president himself being a former organizer probably gets a boost of energy whenever he speaks to any crowd of organizers, be it labor organizers or civil rights organizers," said Jealous.Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/. View the discussion thread. © 2016 WNCW

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Please Support WQCS! Click here to donate online Indian Nations Squeezed By Sequester By editor Originally published on March 27, 2013 9:45 am Transcript MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: I'm Michel Martin, and this is TELL ME MORE, from NPR News. Coming up, when regular jobs can't be found or don't pay all the bills, many Americans turn to the so-called shadow economy, which is bigger than you might think. We'll talk about that in our conversation about personal finance just ahead. But first, we want to turn, again, to how the government is paying its bills or not. We're talking about the sequestration. Those are those across-the-board federal spending cuts that went into effect several weeks ago. They forced federal agencies and employees to tighten their belts, but most Americans have not yet felt the pain of those cuts in their everyday lives. That's not true in Indian Country, where sequestration is already squeezing health and education programs for some of the country's most economically vulnerable people. To tell us more about this, we called Amber Ebarb. She is a budget and policy analyst with the National Congress of American Indians. She's also a member of the Tlingit people. Also joining us is Lacey Horn. She is the treasurer of the Cherokee Nation. Welcome to you both. Thank you both so much for joining us. AMBER EBARB: Thank you. LACEY HORN: Thank you. MARTIN: Amber, I'm going to start with you, because I think most Americans do know that Indian nations, for the most part, have their own sovereign government. So why are federal cuts hitting them so hard? And are there in particular areas? EBARB: Yes. As you mentioned, education and healthcare. These are treaty and trust obligations. The role of federal spending is really rooted in the treaties that were signed by our ancestors with the federal government. So the underpinning of all federal spending is fulfilled in certain programs in the federal budget. And they have been long - it's historically underfunded in every range of governmental services, from law enforcement to health care delivery to infrastructure development, economic development. And this is because tribes often lack a tax base to raise the revenue to deliver these services. So although these services were guaranteed by treaty and signed in contracts, they have never been at parity with the rest of the population. MARTIN: Well, give me, though, a sense of how big the federal imprint is in terms of the funding. Let's say - with most public schools, for example, the federal government picks up, let's say, roughly 10 percent of the budget of public schools K through 12. So what about in Indian Country? EBARB: So for - because there's a lack of a tax base for Indian reservations, there's a program impact aid which supplements funding for Indian reservation schools. And the top 25 districts nationally here are most reliant on federal funding, are on or just off Indian reservations, and impact aid helps relieve these kinds of shortfalls. So there will be a $60 million cut in impact aid, which will directly affect 700 schools and services. And these will affect 115,000 native students. So these are - because these are not forward-funded like most schools, these cuts will be coming down fairly quickly. And so decisions about teachers versus transportation costs will have to be weighed, and neither of those are really good cuts to contemplate. MARTIN: Well, when you're saying forward-funded, we've talked about this before with school officials or with people who cover education more broadly. When you say forward-funded, most schools if they're going to feel the impact, they're going to feel it next fall. EBARB: Right. MARTIN: What you're saying is that schools in Indian Country will feel them right now. EBARB: Right. MARTIN: Well, let me turn to Lacey, here. Lacey is the treasurer of the Cherokee Nation. This is on your plate. Can you give us some example of some of the kinds of decisions that you are contemplating that other tribal leaders are contemplating right now to address this? HORN: Well, this is a conversation we've been having here at the Cherokee Nation since August of last year. So we've been watching this and we've been planning for this. And at this time, we're undertaking cost-containment measures to try and absorb the impact as much as possible before jobs and services are cut back. We are implementing a hiring freeze for all non-essential positions. We're canceling travel and training. We're delaying or foregoing any capital acquisitions, both large and small. And we're looking at our encumbrances to see if there's any changes in scope or quantity that we can make and strictly enforce the employee overtime. We are also waiting to get agency clarification on how these cuts will be applied. And we're getting ready to start our budget cycles for fiscal year '14, and we're starting the process of beginning the determination of the overall percentage reductions that our programs will have to make across the board, that they'll have to build into their FY '14 budgets and take that into account. So, you know, we're trying to absorb this to the greatest extent possible before we start making reductions in jobs and services. MARTIN: Could you give us an example, though, that people might be able to understand, kind of, just sitting in their own living rooms? HORN: Sure. Diabetes is a serious issue in Indian Country - an epidemic, really. And Cherokee Nation is fortunate at this time to have grants through DHHS to educate young people about prevention, provide necessary treatment. Right now, we have a 23 year old girl. She's a high-risk diabetic, 33 weeks pregnant, and she's in a tertiary care hospital. You know, her kidneys are functioning poorly, and her family's worried sick. And also worried is her, you know, three-year-old child that wants his mama back. And sequestration will have such a devastating impact on Cherokee Nation's ability - and all tribes' ability - to help very sick people. MARTIN: We're talking about the impact that sequestration cuts are having on Indian Country. Our guests are Lacey Horn of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. Amber Ebarb is with the National Congress of American Indians. She's also a member of the Tlingit Nation. Amber, can you give us some examples of things that people sitting in their living rooms might understand? EBARB: So another education priority for tribes are tribal colleges. So these cuts will be coming down, and these are really important to Indian Country, because they're culturally accessible to tribal students. A lot of young people who go off to college will - don't fit in culturally when they move to a big city from a reservation or tribal land. So tribal colleges fit a huge role - play a huge role. And we've got some stories from some of the tribal colleges, and the Fort Peck Community College is remote in northeastern Montana. And they would be forced to close its community-based wellness centers and eliminate its GED and adult education program and extracurricular activities for students. And as you know, many reservations have high poverty and not very many economic opportunities, so that this could trigger a domino effect since American Indians have higher high school dropout rates and higher mortality from diabetes and liver disease and others. So these - because many tribes are reliant on federal sources, as opposed to other revenue sources, this will have a disproportionate impact for Indian tribes. MARTIN: One of the things, though, I think people still might not understand is this was debated for months, and people saw this coming down the line. Was there any effort - I mean, Lacey started talking about this, but Amber, I'm going to ask you this sort of more broadly. Was there any effort to meet this challenge ahead of time? And again, why now? Why is it that the public schools, for example, the schools are being affected by this right now? EBARB: Right. This has been a long-running challenge. I mean, we saw it coming for a long time, all politicians did, and it was never intended to go into effect. The sequester was meant to be a deterrent and to force a compromise, and we haven't seen a compromise. And so once again, these promises, not obligations, which are funded in the discretionary side of the budget, are caught up in a larger political debate that is difficult for Indian people to influence because of our small numbers and remote locations and our political power. We tried to raise these concerns, the situation of the Indian Health Service, in particular, as it should be exempt from the sequester altogether, we believe, because it's a treaty obligation. But it's been difficult to make that case with Congress, which this is such a large political battle about the role of the federal government in our nation and what it should do. I mean, it's hard to raise our case to a level that can be pulled out of this political debate. MARTIN: Lacey, you were telling us before we started that the pain of these cuts will be felt beyond the borders of reservations. How so? HORN: Cherokee Nation has such a significant economic impact on northeastern Oklahoma, which primarily is very rural. A recent study revealed that Cherokee Nation and its subsidiary businesses have a $1.3 billion economic impact to the state of Oklahoma. We have that impact by buying and contracting locally. We also give of our tribal funds locally through donations and unrestricted gifts to schools, communities, counties, local law enforcements and nonprofits. Cherokee Nation tries to be a good partner in our communities. However, when the Nation is forced to restrict its spending and its hiring, it will have a direct impact on a local economy and it will send an already depressed rural area into greater depression. MARTIN: Can you talk a little bit more, though, about the point that Amber was making, is that while a lot of Americans will feel these cuts later on down the road, like for example, say, public school systems who are hiring next year; she was making the point that a lot of schools and a lot of institutions are feeling these cuts in Indian country right now. In fact, there - a number of papers have covered the fact that, for example, there was a school system in Montana where a number of the children have been suffering with mental health issues. There were five children who recently committed suicide in a single year. Twenty more made the attempt and this particular school wanted to hire a second counselor, but couldn't do it because of sequestration. Why is it - and Lacey, I'm asking you this question - why is it that these cuts are being felt now in Indian country as opposed to in the rest of the world, and the rest of the country, where there seems to be a delayed effect? HORN: Well, the cuts are being felt now because we're talking about, you know, the neediest people, you know, receiving some of these - receiving these services, and should the sequestration of federal funds for Cherokee Nations stand, you know, over time we will see such a great reduction in services in over the 10 years that sequestration is in law, you know, that - you know, we're in a position now where we may not recover from that. MARTIN: Amber, before we let you go - and I understand that this is - you may consider this beyond your scope of responsibility, but there are critics who say that, you know, sequestration's hurting everybody and that Indian country can't be exempt from this shared sacrifice. What do you say to that? EBARB: Well, we agree with many of the policies, the bipartisan principles that deficit reduction shouldn't increase hardship for the neediest and the most vulnerable and it should honor the promises that we've made to our nation already, whether that's children or elders. And also we should add in Indian country these were contracts signed between our ancestors and the U.S. government and it's critical to the well-being of our children, our elders and coming generations to honor those promises and acknowledge that although they're in the discretionary side of the budget, they should be fulfilled because these are solemn agreements made between tribes and the U.S. government. MARTIN: Amber Ebarb is a budget and policy analyst for the National Congress of American Indians. She's also a member of the Tlingit Nation of Alaska. She was kind enough to join us in our Washington, D.C. studios. Lacey Horn is the treasurer of the Cherokee Nation. She was kind enough to join us from Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Thank you both so much for speaking with us. Please do keep us posted. HORN: Thank you. EBARB: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.Related Program: Tell Me More on HD2 © 2016 WQCS

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$8k/Day will make goal! Give to NPR Illinois today. $63,404 to go to $400,000 goal. Avoid OVERDRIVE in June. U.S. Citizen Killed On MH17 Lived Mainly In Netherlands By Scott Neuman Candles commemorating the dead spell out MH17, the flight number of the plane that crashed Thursday, at a church in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. Joshua Paul Karlijn Keijzer, 25, of Amsterdam, was also among the dead on Malaysia Airlines MH17. She was a doctoral student in chemistry at Indiana University. Mike Dickbernd / Indiana University Originally published on July 18, 2014 4:35 pm Quinn Schansman, the dual U.S.-Dutch citizen killed on Malaysia Airlines MH17, was reportedly planning to join his family in Kuala Lumpur for vacation when the plane he was on was shot down over eastern Ukraine. USA Today says: "Photos on social-media accounts show a fun-loving college student who enjoyed hanging out with friends, had a girlfriend and liked to relax with a beer or a smoke, especially after exams. Some news reports say he was 19 when he died." According to his Facebook page, Schansman considered Amsterdam his home. USA Today, citing public records and social media, says his father lives in Menlo Park, in the San Francisco Bay area, where he currently works for Siemens. His mother lives in Amsterdam, the paper says. NBC News says Schansman was born in New York City but lived in the Netherlands for most of his life. Separately, Indiana University said Friday that 25-year-old Karlijn Keijzer, a Dutch national pursuing a Ph.D. in chemistry at Indiana University, was also among the dead on MH17. Keijzer had been a member of the university's rowing team. "On behalf of the entire Indiana University community, I want to express my deepest sympathies to Karlijn's family and friends over her tragic death," Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie said in a statement on the university's website. "Karlijn was an outstanding student and a talented athlete, and her passing is a loss to the campus and the university. Our hearts also go out to the families of all the victims of this senseless act." The university said Keijzer "was part of a research team that uses large-scale computer simulations to study small-molecule reactions involving certain metals. She was co-author of a research article published this year in the Journal of the American Chemistry Association."Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/. View the discussion thread. © 2016 NPR Illinois

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Inspector General Finds Abuses At Wildlife Agency By Associated Press Dec 9, 2013 ShareTwitter Facebook Google+ Email The Office of Inspector General has completed its investigation of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. The investigation found that leaders of the agency violated state policy by using government property and employees for their own benefit. The Office of Inspector General released findings from a months-long investigation on Monday, citing a variety of misuses of government resources, including instances in which managers used their influence to have free fish delivered to private ponds, a perk that isn't available to the general public. "We fully intend to address the issues raised in the report's findings to ensure that all policies and procedures are followed and that the integrity of the department is maintained," said Stuart Ray, chairman of the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission, a nine-member board that oversees the agency. The investigation found that in one instance, state employees were used on state time in a state vehicle to pick up building materials for the personal use of the former leader of the agency, Wildlife Commissioner Jonathan Gassett, who resigned in September while the investigation was underway. Gassett said in an email message Monday that he hadn't seen the findings and wouldn't have any comment before reviewing them with his lawyer and taking "any necessary action." Bill Haycraft, former president of the League of Kentucky Sportsmen and a longtime critic of the agency, said he wasn't surprised by the findings. "We knew that this sort of thing was going on, but you couldn't prove it," Haycraft said. The inspector general found that several leaders had been involved in using state employees to deliver free fish to private ponds. Matt Sawyers, deputy secretary of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, has temporarily taken over day to day management of the wildlife agency. Gassett left the agency in September to take a job with the Wildlife Management Institute, a nonprofit organization based in Washington. In a letter to employees, Gassett wrote that he decided to leave after "many sleepless nights." The wildlife agency had come under heightened scrutiny in recent years. The inspector general said rank-and-file employees of the agency had also worked at Gassett's house, using agency pumps and fans to remove water from a flooded crawlspace. "They had little means by which to object to an order given to them by a supervisor, even though some of the employees had reservations about the work they were being directed to do," the inspector general wrote in a 59-page report. "There was also present the fear of retaliation for refusal to follow a manager's directive." The inspector general's office called for "appropriate disciplinary action" to be considered against people found to have violated agency regulations or state laws, and called for steps to be taken to protect employees who cooperated in the investigation against retaliation. Tags: Kentucky Department of Fish And WildlifeGovernment InvestigationOffice of Inspector General Ky. Fish And Wildlife Commissioner Resigns Amid Heightened Scrutiny 1 year ago © 2015 WUKY. All rights reserved.

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Jennifer Lopez Sorry She Sang For Turkmenistan's Dictator By Mark Memmott Jun 30, 2013 ShareTwitter Facebook Google+ Email Jennifer Lopez on stage Saturday in Avaza, Turkmenistan. Igor Sasin Here's how the State Department's latest human rights report about the Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan begins: "Although the constitution declares Turkmenistan to be a secular democracy and a presidential republic, the country has an authoritarian government controlled by the president, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov." And the report goes on to say that "security officials tortured and beat criminal suspects, prisoners, and individuals deemed critical of the government to extract confessions and as a form of punishment." Human Rights Watch calls the former Soviet republic's government one of "the most repressive in the world." It reports that "unknown numbers of people languish in the country's notoriously abusive prisons on what appear to be politically motivated charges." The CIA World Factbook says that while "Turkmenistan held its first multi-candidate presidential election in February 2007," its elections have "lacked the freedoms necessary to create a competitive environment." So it's probably no surprise that superstar Jennifer Lopez now regrets having sung Happy Birthday to Berdimuhamedov during a concert Saturday night in Avaza, Turkmenistan. According to The Associated Press, "Lopez's publicist says the event was vetted by Lopez's staff: 'Had there been knowledge of human rights issues any kind, Jennifer would not have attended.' " Agence France Presse adds that her show was organized by China National Petroleum Corp., and that: "Dressed in a clingy outfit, the singer danced with half-naked backing dancers and shook her famous behind in a rare performance for the Muslim country, watched by ministers, ambassadors and chief executives of state-owned companies, all of whom applauded enthusiastically. "She later appeared in a traditional Turkmen dress to sing 'Happy birthday, Mr President' along with stars from Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and China." Lopez is not, of course, the only star in recent years to express regrets after partying with a notorious world leader. The AP notes that: "In 2011, Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank profusely apologized after attending a birthday party for Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who had been accused of torture and killings; she said she didn't have a full understanding of the event. Beyonce, Nelly Furtado, 50 Cent, Mariah Carey and Usher were paid handsomely to perform at parties linked to the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. All later announced plans to donate their performance fees to charity and said they hadn't known the leader was connected to terrorism." Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/. © 2016 WUKY

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News Opinions Blogs Local Communities Sports CU Ads Classifieds Jobs Extras Customer Service Religion « Religion briefs, April 5 M.I.A., Monae perform duet v...» PBR: Milwaukee group wants Pabst brews to return Save | MILWAUKEE (AP) - Long before it was known for fine cheddar cheese or the Green Bay Packers, Wisconsin was famous for beer, especially the national brands brewed in Milwaukee: Schlitz, Blatz and Pabst Blue Ribbon. The brewing tradition started by Milwaukee's German immigrants in the 1800s endured for more than a century, until industry consolidation in the 1980s and '90s began sending familiar brands to other companies and cities. Now a small group of Milwaukee residents wants to revive part of that proud history by buying Pabst Brewing Co. from a California executive in hopes of returning the brand to its birthplace, possibly as a city-owned brewery. The effort appears to be a distant long shot, requiring hundreds of millions of dollars to acquire the 170-year-old beer best known as PBR. But Milwaukee officials like the idea enough to talk about it, and at least one industry analyst says the plan is not beyond the realm of possibility. "When I think about Pabst being anywhere else but Milwaukee, it just doesn't make sense," said Susie Seidelman, an organizer of the "Bring Pabst Blue Ribbon Home" effort. "Milwaukee made this beer what it is. ... It's right on the can." The beer, with its pale gold color and light, fizzy taste, has become especially popular over the last decade among urban hipsters, in part because it's one of the cheapest on the market. The company that started in Milwaukee in 1844 is now headquartered in Los Angeles after being bought by food industry executive C. Dean Metropoulos in 2010 for a reported $250 million. Reports surfaced last month suggesting that Pabst might be looking for buyers. Organizers of the group want Metropoulos to give them first rights of sale so they can begin raising money toward any asking price. Pabst representatives would not comment on any potential sale or the efforts to bring the brand back to Milwaukee, saying only that they "are considering financial alternatives" that will help Pabst "aggressively pursue its next phase of growth through strategic acquisitions." The effort to buy Pabst has a core of seven people with various business and nonprofit backgrounds. It also has a Facebook page titled "Milwaukee Should Own Pabst Blue Ribbon" and a website at bringpbrhome.com, which lets visitors sign a letter to Metropoulos. The letter acknowledges that the purchase proposal might seem "crazy" but asks readers to "humor us for just a moment." "We want to bring PBR home," reads the letter, expected to be sent next week. In 1996, Pabst headquarters left and beer production ceased at the company's main complex in downtown Milwaukee, opening a "gaping hole in our city's economy," according to the letter. PBR is now brewed in another part of town as part of a deal with MillerCoors. Bringing Pabst back is less about the beer and more about "investing in the city of Milwaukee," Seidelman said. A letter to the Milwaukee mayor and city council asks them to consider the purchase of Pabst using a community ownership model similar to that of the Green Bay Packers, in which the public buys stock that does not increase in value and pays no dividends. But, Seidelman said, they are also considering other options, including forming a cooperative. Another organizer, Erika Wolf, said the group wants to hold town-hall-style meetings and online chats about how to buy and run PBR. The first meeting is scheduled for April 23. Regardless of the business structure chosen, they want to put the profits back into the city, she said. The group's website was put together by the great-great granddaughter of brewery founder Frederick Pabst. Bridget Byrnes, a web designer in Missoula, Mont., volunteered after seeing the Facebook page. The return of Pabst back would hopefully create jobs and "bring Milwaukee back to the beer city it was." Save | Subscribe to The Advertiser-Tribune I am looking for:

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Williston fire chief leaves legacy of service Calvin Melton, who served the town of Williston for more than 30 years as a firefighter, school board member and county councilman, died Wednesday at the age of 61. ��It’s difficult to walk through the town of Williston and not run into someone whose life was touched by Calvin Melton. A firefighter for 35 years – 27 of which were spent as the town’s fire chief, Melton was also a member of the Barnwell County Council, the Williston School District 29 board of trustees, the Williston Rescue Squad, the Lions Club and a number of other organizations. He was also a founding member and former president of the Lower State Fireman’s Association. On Wednesday, he died at his home at the age of 61 after a battle with cancer. He was laid to rest in the Williston Cemetery on Saturday with fireman’s honors. The memories of Melton, though, run just as many as the people who knew him. “He was ‘that guy’ – that guy you call,” said Nancy Brady-Wood, a teacher at Kelly Edward Elementary School in Williston. “There’s one in every community, and he’s the one in Williston. You know that he’s gonna get things done. If he can’t do it himself, he’s gonna point you in the right direction.” Brady-Wood grew up in Williston and is now an educator in the same school system she went through as a student, teaching fourth grade along with Melton’s wife, Debbie. “It’s the way his roles have been changing all through my life,” she said of Melton. “When I was younger, he was the fire chief and the guy everybody called in town. And then when I got to be a teacher, he was the guy on the school board that you called because you knew you could count on him to do whatever you needed him to do and hear you out. Now, he was my friend because of being so close to Debbie and the boys.” Melton was currently serving on the school board when he died. Just last month, he was recognized for 10 years of service to the district and presented with a 10-year pin at the board’s monthly meeting. Eavon Hickson, principal of Williston-Elko Middle School, said Melton cared deeply about the school system and its students and employees. “He wanted to know if there was anything he could do to make things better,” she said. “He wanted to know how things were going, things that were set in motion. How were things working in the building? Was there anything the board needed to be aware of to make things better?” Hickson said Melton spoke up not just for the students, but for everyone in the district. She recalled when he expressed concern about custodians being able to keep their jobs. “You could rest assured that he was going to check on you in times of need, and to me, that was important,” she said. Alison Brown, guidance counselor at Williston-Elko High School, recalled Melton not only cared for the students and teachers, but “he was always friendly.” “It was never about him,” she said. “Even during his time of sickness, if you would say, ‘How are you?’ it wasn’t about him. He always wanted the attention to be on you. He was always concerned for others and never wanted the attention to be on him.” Mayor Tommy Rivers said Melton leaves behind “a legacy of volunteerism.” “Calvin volunteered for everything,” he said. “He was just Mr. Volunteer in Williston.” Rivers recalled a humorous moment going with Melton and other Town officials to the Savannah River Site to pick up some surplus equipment. Melton had recently had open heart surgery and a nuclear stress test at the time, and the men had to go through a security checkpoint several times because the alarm kept going off. “We go through and Calvin turns around and says, ‘Somebody’s setting that thing off and they need to quit,’ and it was him from the nuclear stress test,” Rivers recalled. “His greatest contribution is the fire department … and bringing that department into the 21st century,” Rivers said. “He loved that fire department. We’re losing a legacy of volunteerism, and it’ll be a hard void to fill.” Milton Widener, chief of the Williston Fire Department, fought fires with Melton for 35 years. “He loved this department, he loved this equipment and most of all he loved his firefighters,” Widener said. “Just as the other things he was involved with in the community, he put 100 percent into it.” Melton was instrumental in getting much of the department’s new equipment, and in getting the department’s lowest-ever Insurance Service Office rating, which lowers the cost of homeowner’s insurance in a community as the rating lowers. Widener said one of the many things he learned from Melton was “how to treat your people.” “When you’re dealing with a bunch of volunteers, it’s not like at work where you can threaten to fire somebody,” he said. A father of two sons, Charles and John, Melton was also a family man. “Calvin loved his boys tremendously,” Widener said. “He loved Debbie, and his dogs, especially JJ.” On Saturday, Widener drove the fire department’s 1951 truck, which carried the casket containing Melton’s body, from First Baptist Church of Williston to the cemetery. Melton’s dog JJ rode in the front seat with him. “He was a family man,” Widener said. “I think he’ll be remembered for all the avenues he’s walked through life.”

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Updated: Mon, Oct 14, 2013, 9:45 am Uploaded: Sun, Oct 13, 2013, 1:41 am Stanford Shopping Center rebuild to bring major changes Reshuffling of Bloomingdale's, Fleming's makes room for four new buildings Eric Van Susteren / Palo Alto Weekly The final phase of the Stanford Shopping Center renovation would place four smaller buildings where the massive Bloomingdale's department store currently stands. Subscribe for unlimited accessRead FAQA larger entrance with a circular fountain, a driveway lined with towering Italian cypress trees, and four new buildings that will stand in place of the massive Bloomingdale's department store await Stanford Shopping Center after it gains city of Palo Alto approval for the final phase of its redevelopment. The initial phases of the upscale shopping center's transformation included constructing a new building in the parking lot along El Camino Real for Fleming's restaurant and the upcoming move of Bloomingdale's to a new, scaled-down, three-story building located at the former Fleming's site. But the third phase, which the Palo Alto Architectural Review Board considered recently week, would include some of the most dramatic changes the center has seen in its three-year remodeling effort. Most notable would be the construction of three retail buildings and one mixed-use building on the former site of Bloomingdale's, which at 133,600 square feet currently dominates the center's northeast corner, facing El Camino. Each building will house multiple small shops, though Simon Properties Co., the company that manages the center, stated in an email to the Weekly that it couldn't comment on which stores might occupy the new space. There will be two, 1-story buildings and two, 2-story buildings, one of which will house office space on the second floor. The four buildings, which tenants would customize with their company's "look," would be visible from El Camino and Quarry Road. The final phase of the renovation also includes plans that would impact the feel of the entire shopping center, which was founded in 1955 and has been renovated several times. To modernize and create a more cohesive appearance, the lighting, pavement and signage throughout the site would be updated to differentiate between the center's streets and pedestrian paths. The central walkway, running parallel to Quarry, would become the center's new "main street," with each of the remaining interior streets designed with distinguishing characteristics. Though a detailed landscaping plan hasn't yet been unveiled, renovation would also update the shopping center's popular landscaping, featuring a simplified at-grade scheme with different themes for four distinct areas — outdoor rooms, the main avenue, luxury shopping and areas for families and kids. The southeast entrance to the center, next to Neiman Marcus, would be redesigned to accommodate events such as concerts and gatherings and would include a circular water feature with a pedestrian bridge. Rows of Italian cypress trees along the primary entrance of the center at El Camino would be planted. In all, the shopping center is proposing to plant 78 trees and remove 38 throughout the site. They would include valley oak, southern live oak, callery pear and gingko trees. Stanford Shopping Center currently has 5,826 parking spaces, but the proposed project would eliminate 260 spaces, leaving the center with more than the required number of 5,284 spaces. Posted by Tom Croft a resident of Atherton: other on Oct 14, 2013 at 2:26 pm This article needs a map showing where stores will be. a resident of Menlo Park: University Heights on Oct 14, 2013 at 4:29 pm I see a huge parking problem, especially during long busy weekends and the holidays. With the current construction I believe they are probably down about 1000 spots. Build another 2 story garage. Would be great to bring back Palo Alto Creamery and some other places to sit down and eat kid friendly. Report Objectionable Content Posted by Frequenter of Shopping Center a resident of Hillview Middle School on Oct 17, 2013 at 9:54 pm One of my favorite things about the Stanford Shopping Center is that it's outdoors and the walkways have stunning foliage including trees, vines and incredible flower variety and compositions. I used to take my kids here when they were younger just to appreciate the beautiful flowers and fountains (and of course we ended up purchasing food and clothes as a result). I really hope they don't replace these beautiful parts of the Center. Dumbing down the landscaping with "a simplified at grade scheme" using "themes" sounds horrible. It sounds like Disneyland. Regarding the parking, it's already a huge pain on weekends and around holidays to find a parking spot. Really, they're going to increase stores, creat office space and decrease parking? Sounds like a good plan to annoy shoppers and decrease business.

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Ahead of July 4th, a tropical storm off Florida SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — With the July Fourth weekend on the horizon, the Atlantic hurricane season's first named storm plodded off Florida's coast early Wednesday, though Tropical Storm Arthur wasn't yet spooking too many in the storm's potential path."I think everybody's keeping one eye on the weather and one eye on the events this weekend," said Joe Marinelli, president of Visit Savannah, the city's tourism bureau.A tropical storm watch was in effect for a swath of Florida's east coast. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami urged those as far north as parts of Virginia to monitor Tropical Storm Arthur's path. The center said Arthur was becoming better organized and predicted it would become a hurricane by Thursday.Early Wednesday morning, forecasters said the storm was growing a little stronger as it moved slowly northward. It was about 95 miles (155 km) off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, and its maximum sustained winds had increased to about 60 mph (95 kph). The storm was heading north at about 4 mph (6 kph). A gradual increase in forward speed was expected Wednesday, followed by a turn to the northeast by Thursday, the Hurricane Center said.Off Florida's Space Coast beaches — the closest to Arthur — the sky was cloudy and winds fairly normal, said Eisen Witcher, assistant chief of Brevard County Ocean Rescue.Red flags warned of rough surf, and beachgoers were advised to get into the water only in areas with staffed lifeguard stands. But overall, Witcher said, "it's business as usual."Red flags also flew at Daytona Beach. By midday, a dozen swimmers had been aided by lifeguards when they got caught in a rip current. On any given day, 15 to 20 swimmers need help, said Tammy Marris, spokeswoman for the Volusia County Beach Patrol.Near the storm, 19 ill crew members were evacuated from a South Korean cargo ship after they showed signs of food poisoning. The cargo ship JS Comet was anchored 3 miles off Cape Canaveral, and the Coast Guard reported that deteriorating weather conditions were one factor in the decision to evacuate.Outside Florida, there were no official storm watches or warnings, but forecasters started to warn of upcoming rain, heavy surf and swells, and rip tides.In North Carolina's Outer Banks, officials said they would close Cape Lookout National Seashore at 5 p.m. Wednesday and reopen when it's safe.The motel Shutters on the Banks was completely booked for the holiday weekend, general manager John Zeller said, despite forecasts for potentially heavy rain, gusty winds and isolated tornadoes late Thursday and Friday."We have received some cancellations but not too many," he said. "Basically we are telling people to kind of wait and see what happens."The motel has a 72-hour advance notice on cancellations, but Zeller said it will be waived if the storm tracks toward the area or warnings are issued.In Folly Beach, South Carolina, dozens of people fished from the pier under sunny skies Tuesday. Others surfed on gentle swells, sunbathed and looked for shells.In Savannah, rooms in the downtown historic district were expected to be at least 80 percent full for the holiday weekend, when crowds pack the beach on neighboring Tybee Island.Cancellations aren't uncommon when storms approach, but those calls weren't coming in Tuesday, Marinelli said.Amy Gaster said her Tybee Island vacation rental company had more than 200 beach homes and condos booked for the weekend, likely to be the busiest of the year. If forecasts start to show a serious threat, Gaster said her staff was prepared to send alerts to guests' cellphones.But as long as Arthur stays offshore, she said her biggest concerns are rip currents and possible thundershowers on Thursday, when thousands are expected to pack the Georgia coast's largest public beach for fireworks."Hopefully Mother Nature is going to cooperate with us this year," Gaster said.___Associated Press writers Bruce Smith in Charleston, South Carolina, and Mike Schneider in Orlando, Florida, contributed to this report.

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, A memorial to Christopher Lane is shown along the road where he was shot and killed in Duncan, Okla. Lane, an Australian who was on a baseball scholarship at East Central University in Ada, Okla., was in Duncan visiting his girlfriend, when he was shot and killed Friday, Aug. 16. (Associated Press) Beam: Australian killed for ‘fun of it’ Last Modified: Wednesday, August 21, 2013 5:27 PM By Jim Beam / American Press Daily reports of bad news from around the world can make us insensitive to the suffering of others. However, we occasionally have a bad news story grab our attention, and it won’t let go. One of those stories was especially troubling this week. A headline said it all. “Teens charged after allegedly killing Australian student in Oklahoma for the ‘fun of it’.” Unless they have been through a similar experience, most parents can’t comprehend what it must be like for someone in another country to hear their son or daughter has been killed in the United States for no logical reason. However, that is exactly what happened to Mr. and Mrs. Peter Lane, whose son Christopher was the shooting victim. The crime was reported by many news outlets, but the following details come from stories done by The Associated Press, Reuters, NBC News and Fox News. “The fact that something that shouldn’t have happened has happened — it’s the fact that somebody we all love so much is not going to come home,” Peter Lane said. “There’s not going to be any good coming out of this because it was so senseless. It happened, it’s wrong and we’re just trying to deal with it the best we can.” Christopher Lane, 22, of Melbourne was jogging along a road in Duncan, Okla., after visiting his girlfriend, Sarah Harper, last Friday. He was shot in the back with a .22-caliber revolver. He was in this country on a baseball scholarship at East Central University in Ada, which is 85 miles east of Duncan. Chancey Allen Luna, 16, and James Francis Edwards Jr., 15, of Duncan have been charged with first-degree murder. Under Oklahoma law, they will be tried as adults. If convicted, both face a possible sentence of life in prison without parole. A 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling said they cannot receive the death penalty because they were under 18 at the time of the crime. Both are being held without bond. Michael Dewayne Jones, 17, also of Duncan, was allegedly driving the vehicle carrying the other suspects. He is accused of using a vehicle in the discharge of a weapon and accessory to first-degree murder after the fact. His bond was set at $1 million. Prosecutor Jason Hicks said Luna was sitting in the rear seat of the car when he pulled the trigger and shot Lane. Hicks said Jones was driving and Edwards was in the passenger seat. He didn’t agree with bond for Jones. “I believe this man is a threat to the community and should not be let out,” Hicks said. “He thinks it’s all a joke.” Duncan Police Chief Danny Ford said, “They saw Christopher go by, and one of them said: ‘There’s our target.’ The boy who has talked to us said, ‘We were bored and didn’t have anything to do, so we decided to kill somebody’.” A witness called 911 when she saw Lane stagger across the road and fall, the police said. Another woman tried CPR and paramedics also arrived on the scene, but Lane was pronounced dead an hour later. Police used surveillance video from area businesses to identify the vehicle, which was found later at a church parking lot with the three suspects inside. A caller had reported there were three youths with guns who were threatening to kill someone. Chief Ford said, “I think they were on a killing spree. We would have had more bodies that night if we didn’t get them.” Comments from parents of two of the youngsters were puzzling. Jennifer Luna identified herself as the mother of Chancey Luna, the alleged shooter. She said her son should be punished if he was involved. She said the three boys were part of a “wannabe gang,” but insisted her son isn’t a killer. Then, during a tearful interview with reporters, she addressed Lane’s parents. “I wouldn’t want to be in that position that they’re in right now,” she said. “I’m always on my kids. I always tell them: If I lost y’all, I wouldn’t be able to live.” The father of Edwards, the 15-year-old, denied his son played a part in Lane’s death, but did say he had had run-ins with the law before. Parker, Lane’s girlfriend, said, “I don’t really care what happens to them. I feel like if they don’t get what they deserve now and in the present, they will eternally. They’re just evil people.” Sheriff Wayne McKinney of Stephens County, Okla., said there had been an escalation in major crimes committed by people under 18 in recent years in the county, which is a rural ranching and farming community about an hour and a half outside Oklahoma Young people are killing and being killed in major cities every day across this country, and there doesn’t seem to be any universal solution to the carnage. And that is why Americans tend to become insensitive to those that make newspaper headlines and stories on the evening news. The killing of Christopher Lane is different because it is such a senseless act that touches two continents. And that reflects badly on all of us who live on this one where the dastardly deed took place. A message left Monday at home plate where Lane played baseball in Australia asks a question we should all try to answer and do our best to keep it from happening again. It said, “A wonderful young man taken too soon. Why?” • • • Jim Beam, the retired editor of the American Press, has covered people and politics for more than five decades. Contact him at 494-4025 or [email protected]

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More RegionalBasingstoke South Downs planners reject plans for mansion near Kings Worthy / Andrew Napier / @andrew_napier PLANNERS at the South Downs National Park have turned down 24 new homes at a mansion near Winchester, because a legal agreement has not been signed. The park’s planning committee backed their officers’ recommendation to reject the scheme for ten flats at Abbots Worthy House and two in its coach house. The scheme also included the demolition of an existing semi-derelict wing, outbuildings and garage and erection of new wing comprising four flats, with 35 parking spaces, and the building of a Regency-style building for eight units of social housing with 12 parking spaces. A similar scheme was approved in November 2011 but only on condition that the developer signed a legal section 106 agreement to guarantee social housing, a payment for public open space, the protection and future maintenance of a listed Georgian wall and a new crossing and cycling path. A report to the planning committee meeting at Midhurst in Sussex last Thursday (AUG14) said: “The applicant’s mortgage provider was not willing to complete the S106 agreement and the applicant has now disposed of the land. As the S106 has not been completed the application remains undetermined. The new owner is unknown to the SDNPA.” Abbots Worthy House is not listed as it was rebuilt after a major fire in the 1950s. The 2011 application was controversial with objectors including Kings Worthy Parish Council, the Upper Itchen Valley Society and 43 other people.

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Money for Old Rope: Demise of the Manned Helicopter? By Andrew Drwiega, Military Editor With the traditional festival of flight that is usually encapsulated by Farnborough Airshow (alternating in the odd years with Le Bourget in Paris), the outlook for military rotorcraft orders from Europe is not good. For those who still do not wish to believe that the good times of defense spending in the west are over—at least in the short to mid-term—Dr. John Chipman, director-general and chief executive of the UK’s International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) stated in March: “Since the financial crisis in 2008, there has been a convergence in European and Asian defense spending levels. While per capita spending levels in Asia remain significantly lower than those in Europe, on the current trend Asian defense spending is likely to exceed that of Europe, in nominal terms, during 2012.” Chipman notes that Asia is becoming increasingly militarized and according to the IISS, has over 30 percent of the regional share of defense spending. Much rotorcraft development is being conducted through joint ventures with western manufacturers, although many of these are in the civil or military support helicopter categories. The defense budgets of European nations have been really hit by the economic turbulence of the national debit of several countries: Greece, Portugal, Italy and Spain being the most talked about. According to research compiled by Defense News (June 4, 2012), Greece has had its defense budget cut by a huge 47.3 percent, Spain by 40.9, Italy by 21.4 and even the UK has suffered with a 19.4 percent cut (all figures comparing 2008 to 2012 budgets). So is there any hope of selling military rotorcraft to customers unable to invest into new high cost research and development programs? Perhaps there is. One such area where the aerospace defense industry might be able to claw back some revenue is through innovation—but using old platforms as a base instead of designing new uses. If new build helicopters are going to be difficult to sell, then how about supplementing the order books with older in-service aircraft reconfigured and given a new lease of life? A number of examples immediately come to mind. In 2010 the U.S. State Department and Sikorsky entered into an agreement for the purchase of 110 modernized S-61Ts, some of which are being used by the U.S. government abroad in locations including Iraq and Afghanistan. With the addition of composite main rotor blades, a state-of-the-art glass cockpit, modular wiring harness, and modern survivability and force protection enhancements the aircraft—although not of modern design—is set to do the job required by the State Department. Incidentally, the first Sea King prototype flew in March 1959. The UK is looking to stand down its fleet of search and rescue Sea Kings, together with those used by the Commando Helicopter Force. Perhaps a new use could be found for them, if not in the UK then in the resale market. The rebirth of the military Little Bird, either in the guise of Boeing’s technically advanced AH-6 or now MD Helicopter’s more modest MD540F, both have their origins in the original MD500 series design that traces its history back to the early 1960s. An unmanned version of Boeing’s AH-6 exists and has already undertaken several years of trials. Some Middle Eastern countries are believed to be close to ordering Boeing’s aircraft as a reconnaissance/light attack aircraft. There is even a proposal to turn the UK’s British Army Gazelle helicopters into basic unmanned ISR platforms for the Royal Navy. The Aerospatiale-designed Gazelle first flew in 1967, but now with the assistance of Northrop Grumman and the addition of a vehicle management system similar to that being used by the U.S. Navy’s MQ-8B Fire Scout, it is envisaged that the result could result in a maritime vertical take-off and landing unmanned air system (VTUAS). Let’s not forget that the Fire Scout itself was derived from a Schweizer 300 series aircraft first flown in the late 1980s. The final example of a repurposed aircraft would be Kaman’s unmanned K-Max, which is undergoing extended field trials with the U.S. Army’s Marine Corps in Afghanistan. Originally the K-Max 1200, although the production line has been closed for nearly a decade, if the USMC really decides that they like the concept … then will Kaman have a plan to deliver? There is an unmistakeable theme running through this for most of the platforms, and that is the veering towards the unmanned development of rotorcraft. It may be, given the expense of developing new manned helicopters, that by converting older platforms for UAS type rolls (which are expanding all the time), this could be one of the key points where we look back at the substantial demise of the manned helicopter. Related: Unmanned Helicopter News 40 Years Retrospective: It's Been a Wild Ride International Team Nailing Down Safety Numbers International Group Urges Use of Safety Management Systems

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Mariah Carey is planning a surprise release similar to Queen Bey, the singer revealed in her cover story for the new issue of Billboard magazine. Although she doesn't name Mrs. Carter directly in the story, she like Bey, is taking full control of the project. The album's track list, artwork, and music will be announced digitally all at once, followed by a physical release a week later. "I have to be the one that announces this, especially the title," she told the magazine. The title, Carey teased is a "personal possession" that is "part of an entity that I've had almost all my life." Also featured in the cover story is Jermaine Dupri, Carey's longtime friend, music partner, and now manager. Everything about album No. 14 will be a bit different than her previous work, from the promotion to the production to the guestlist, Carey is open to taking more chances this time around. Producers Mike Will Made It and Hit-Boy are on board, and features include Wale, Nas, Trey Songz, and "a special guest star" that she's "not allowed to reveal." The release is set to showcase power ballads and up-tempo tracks, and is one of two new projects she has in the works. "I have another project that I'm so very excited about that's finally coming to fruition," the 44-year-old mom of two said. Carey's Billboard issue hits stands Monday (April 28). Get ready for the BET Experience, featuring Mary J. Blige, Maxwell, Jill Scott, A$AP Rocky, Rick Ross and many more. Click here for more details and info on how to purchase tickets. BET.com is your #1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music. Click here to subscribe to our newsletter. Written by Latifah Muhammad Mike Will Made It

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Vandals target sheds at Biggleswade allotments One of the vandalised sheds Vandals broke windows and tore shed doors from their hinges at allotments on Sunday night (March 16). Around five plots were targeted in the attacks at Biggleswade Allotments in Kennel Farm Road.Allotment holders arrived at the site on Monday to find a trail of destruction at the plots. A number of tools were also stolen from one of the sheds. Sara Newman – who has grown vegetables at an allotment on the site for five years – was shocked when she saw the extent of the damage.She said: “When the weather is warm you will often see teenagers coming down, lighting fires and drinking.“But this is something on a different scale and shows a complete lack of respect for the people who have allotments here.”Tools that were being stored in the sheds were also used to cause some of the damage. Sara added: “You can clearly see marks from a pitch fork on the door of a shed that was targeted.“In that case the wood was strong and thick enough not to cave in, but with some of the others the doors themselves have been smashed up and then torn off.”The Biggleswade Allotment Group has spoken to Beds Police and Biggleswade Town Council about security at the site, but is concerned that there is a limit to what can be done.Sara said: “We are trying to increase security here but it is difficult as we can’t have people keeping watch over the site 24 hours a day. “It’s difficult to stop people if they are determined to cause damage.”Anyone with any information should contact Beds Police on the non-emergency number, 101.Alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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NewsroomPress ReleasesSpeechesTestimonyPublicationsElectronic FOIAExport Control Reform NewsArchivesNewsroom Press Release Speeches Testimony ReformExport.GovECR Teleconference Decision Tree ToolsECR FAQs United Technologies Subsidiary Pleads Guilty to Criminal Charges for Helping China Develop New Attack Helicopter | Print | U.S. Department of Justice For Immediate Release: June 28, 2012 Contact -- BIS Public Affairs: 202-482-2721 UNITED TECHNOLOGIES SUBSIDIARY PLEADS GUILTY TO CRIMINAL CHARGES FOR HELPING CHINA DEVELOP NEW ATTACK HELICOPTER United Technologies, Pratt & Whitney Canada and Hamilton Sundstrand Corporations Also Agree to Pay More Than $75 Million to U.S. Government BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp. (PWC), a Canadian subsidiary of the Connecticut-based defense contractor United Technologies Corporation (UTC), today pleaded guilty to violating the Arms Export Control Act and making false statements in connection with its illegal export to China of U.S.-origin military software used in the development of China’s first modern military attack helicopter, the Z-10. In addition, UTC, its U.S.-based subsidiary Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation (HSC) and PWC have all agreed to pay more than $75 million as part of a global settlement with the Justice Department and State Department in connection with the China arms export violations and for making false and belated disclosures to the U.S. government about these illegal exports. Roughly $20.7 million of this sum is to be paid to the Justice Department. The remaining $55 million is payable to the State Department as part of a separate consent agreement to resolve outstanding export issues, including those related to the Z-10. Up to $20 million of this penalty can be suspended if applied by UTC to remedial compliance measures. As part of the settlement, the companies admitted conduct set forth in a stipulated and publicly filed statement of facts. Today’s actions were announced by David B. Fein, U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; John Morton, Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); Ed Bradley, Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Field Office of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS); Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI New Haven Division; David Mills, Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement; and Andrew J. Shapiro, Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs. The Charges Today in the District of Connecticut, the Justice Department filed a three-count criminal information charging UTC, PWC and HSC. Count One charges PWC with violating the Arms Export Control Act in connection with the illegal export of defense articles to China for the Z-10 helicopter. Count Two charges PWC, UTC and HSC with making false statements to the U.S. government in their belated disclosures relating to the illegal exports. Count Three charges PWC and HSC with failure to timely inform the U.S. government of exports of defense articles to China. While PWC has pleaded guilty to Counts One and Two, the Justice Department has recommended that prosecution of UTC and HSC on Count Two, and PWC and HSC on Count Three be deferred for two years, provided the companies abide by the terms of a deferred prosecution agreement with the Justice Department. As part of the agreement, the companies must pay $75 million and retain an Independent Monitor to monitor and assess their compliance with export laws for the next two years. The Export Scheme Since 1989, the United States has imposed a prohibition upon the export to China of all U.S. defense articles and associated technical data as a result of the conduct in June 1989 at Tiananmen Square by the military of the People’s Republic of China. In February 1990, the U.S. Congress imposed a prohibition upon licenses or approvals for the export of defense articles to the People’s Republic of China. In codifying the embargo, Congress specifically named helicopters for inclusion in the ban. Dating back to the 1980s, China sought to develop a military attack helicopter. Beginning in the 1990s, after Congress had imposed the prohibition on exports to China, China sought to develop its attack helicopter under the guise of a civilian medium helicopter program in order to secure Western assistance. The Z-10, developed with assistance from Western suppliers, is China’s first modern military attack helicopter. During the development phases of China’s Z-10 program, each Z-10 helicopter was powered by engines supplied by PWC. PWC delivered 10 of these development engines to China in 2001 and 2002. Despite the military nature of the Z-10 helicopter, PWC determined on its own that these development engines for the Z-10 did not constitute “defense articles,” requiring a U.S. export license, because they were identical to those engines PWC was already supplying China for a commercial helicopter. Because the Electronic Engine Control software, made by HSC in the United States to test and operate the PWC engines, was modified for a military helicopter application, it was a defense article and required a U.S. export license. Still, PWC knowingly and willfully caused this software to be exported to China for the Z-10 without any U.S. export license. In 2002 and 2003, PWC caused six versions of the military software to be illegally exported from HSC in the United States to PWC in Canada, and then to China, where it was used in the PWC engines for the Z-10. According to court documents, PWC knew from the start of the Z-10 project in 2000 that the Chinese were developing an attack helicopter and that supplying it with U.S.-origin components would be illegal. When the Chinese claimed that a civil version of the helicopter would be developed in parallel, PWC marketing personnel expressed skepticism internally about the “sudden appearance” of the civil program, the timing of which they questioned as “real or imagined.” PWC nevertheless saw an opening for PWC “to insist on exclusivity in [the] civil version of this helicopter,” and stated that the Chinese would “no longer make reference to the military program.” PWC failed to notify UTC or HSC about the attack helicopter until years later and purposely turned a blind eye to the helicopter’s military application. HSC in the United States had believed it was providing its software to PWC for a civilian helicopter in China, based on claims from PWC. By early 2004, HSC learned there might an export problem and stopped working on the Z-10 project. UTC also began to ask PWC about the exports to China for the Z-10. Regardless, PWC on its own modified the software and continued to export it to China through June 2005. According to court documents, PWC’s illegal conduct was driven by profit. PWC anticipated that its work on the Z-10 military attack helicopter in China would open the door to a far more lucrative civilian helicopter market in China, which according to PWC estimates, was potentially worth as much as $2 billion to PWC. Belated and False Disclosures to U.S. Government These companies failed to disclose to the U.S. government the illegal exports to China for several years and only did so after an investor group queried UTC in early 2006 about whether PWC’s role in China’s Z-10 attack helicopter might violate U.S. laws. The companies then made an initial disclosure to the State Department in July 2006, with follow-up submissions in August and September 2006. The 2006 disclosures contained numerous false statements. Among other things, the companies falsely asserted that they were unaware until 2003 or 2004 that the Z-10 program involved a military helicopter. In fact, by the time of the disclosures, all three companies were aware that PWC officials knew at the project’s inception in 2000 that the Z-10 program involved an attack helicopter. Today, the Z-10 helicopter is in production and initial batches were delivered to the People’s Liberation Army of China in 2009 and 2010. The primary mission of the Z-10 is anti-armor and battlefield interdiction. Weapons of the Z-10 have included 30 mm cannons, anti-tank guided missiles, air-to-air missiles and unguided rockets. “PWC exported controlled U.S. technology to China, knowing it would be used in the development of a military attack helicopter in violation of the U.S. arms embargo with China,” said U.S. Attorney Fein. “PWC took what it described internally as a ‘calculated risk,’ because it wanted to become the exclusive supplier for a civil helicopter market in China with projected revenues of up to two billion dollars. Several years after the violations were known, UTC, HSC and PWC disclosed the violations to the government and made false statements in doing so. The guilty pleas by PWC and the agreement reached with all three companies should send a clear message that any corporation that willfully sends export controlled material to an embargoed nation will be prosecuted and punished, as will those who know about it and fail to make a timely and truthful disclosure.” “Due in part to the efforts of these companies, China was able to develop its first modern military attack helicopter with restricted U.S. defense technology. As today’s case demonstrates, the Justice Department will spare no effort to hold accountable those who compromise U.S. national security for the sake of profits and then lie about it to the government,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco. “I thank the agents, analysts and prosecutors who helped bring about this important case.” “This case is a clear example of how the illegal export of sensitive technology reduces the advantages our military currently possesses,” said ICE Director Morton. “I am hopeful that the conviction of Pratt & Whitney Canada and the substantial penalty levied against United Technologies and its subsidiaries will deter other companies from considering similarly ill-conceived business practices in the future. American military prowess depends on lawful, controlled exports of sensitive technology by U.S. industries and their subsidiaries, which is why ICE will continue its present campaign to aggressively investigate and prosecute criminal violations of U.S. export laws relating to national security.” “Today’s charges and settlement demonstrate the continued commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and fellow agencies to protect sensitive U.S. defense technology from being illegally exported,” said DCIS Special Agent in Charge Bradley. “Safeguarding our military technology is vital to our nation’s defense and the protection of our war fighters both home and abroad. We know that foreign governments are actively seeking U.S. defense technology for their own development. Thwarting these efforts is a top priority for DCIS. I applaud the agents and prosecutors who worked tirelessly to bring about this result.” “Preventing the loss of critical U.S. information and technologies is one of the most important investigative priorities of the FBI,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Mertz. “Our adversaries routinely target sensitive research and development data and intellectual property from universities, government agencies, manufacturers, and defense contractors. While the thefts associated with economic espionage and illegal technology transfers may not capture the same level of attention as a terrorist incident, the costs to the U.S. economy and our national security are substantial. Violations of the Arms Export Control Act put our nation at risk and the FBI, along with all of our federal agency partners, are committed to ensuring that embargoed technologies do not fall into the wrong hands. Those who violate these laws should expect to be held accountable. An important part of the FBI’s strategy in this area involves the development of strategic partnerships. In that regard, the FBI looks forward to future coordination with UTC and its subsidiaries to strengthen information sharing and counterintelligence awareness.” “Protecting national security is our top priority,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement Mills. “Today’s action sends a clear signal that federal law enforcement agencies will work together diligently to prevent U.S. technology from falling into the wrong hands.” Assistant Secretary Shapiro, of the State Department’s Bureau of Political and Military Affairs, said, “Today’s $75 million settlement with United Technologies Corporation sends a clear message: willful violators of U.S. arms export control regulations will be pursued and punished. The successful resolution of this case is the byproduct of the tireless work of our compliance officers and highlights the relentless commitment of the State Department to protect sensitive American technologies from being illegally transferred.” U.S. Attorney Fein commended the many agencies involved in this investigation, including ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New Haven; the DCIS in New Haven; the New Haven Division of the FBI; the Department of Commerce’s Boston Office of Export Enforcement. He also praised the Office of the HSI Attaché in Toronto, which was essential to the initiation and investigation of this matter, and the State Department’s Office of Defense Trade Controls Compliance in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, for its critical role in the global resolution of this matter. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen B. Reynolds and Michael J. Gustafson from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, with assistance from Steven Pelak and Ryan Fayhee of the Counterespionage Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

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Pioneering journalist Helen Thomas dies at 92 Helen Thomas, George W. Bush FILE - In this Aug. 2, 2006, file photo, President Bush, right, greets veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas during the final briefing in the press briefing room in the West Wing of the White House in Washington before its renovation. Thomas, a pioneer for women in journalism and an irrepressible White House correspondent, has died Saturday, July 20, 2013. She was 92. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File) CALVIN WOODWARD,Associated Press Published: Saturday, July 20, 2013 at 11:39 a.m. WASHINGTON (AP) — Helen Thomas, the irrepressible White House correspondent who used her seat in the front row of history to grill 10 presidents and was not shy about sharing her opinions, died Saturday. She was 92. Thomas, who died at her apartment in Washington, had been ill for a long time, and in and out of the hospital before coming home Thursday, according to a friend, Muriel Dobbin.Thomas made her name as a bulldog for United Press International in the great wire-service rivalries of old, and as a pioneer for women in journalism.She was persistent to the point of badgering. One White House press secretary described her questioning as "torture" — and he was one of her fans.Her refusal to conceal her strong opinions, even when posing questions to a president, and her public hostility toward Israel, caused discomfort among colleagues.In 2010, that tendency finally ended a career which had started in 1943 and made her one of the best known journalists in Washington. On a videotape circulated on the Internet, she said Israelis should "get out of Palestine" and "go home" to Germany, Poland or the United States. The remark brought down widespread condemnation and she ended her career.In January 2011, she became a columnist for a free weekly paper in a Washington suburb, months after the controversy forced her from her previous post.In her long career, she was indelibly associated with the ritual ending White House news conferences. She was often the one to deliver the closing line: "Thank you, Mister. President" — four polite words that belied a fierce competitive streak.Her disdain for White House secrecy and dodging spanned five decades, back to President John Kennedy. Her freedom to voice her peppery opinions as a speaker and a Hearst columnist came late in her career.The Bush administration marginalized her, clearly peeved with a journalist who had challenged President George W. Bush to his face on the Iraq war and declared him the worst president in history.After she quit UPI in 2000 — by then an outsized figure in a shrunken organization — her influence waned.Thomas was accustomed to getting under the skin of presidents, if not to the cold shoulder."If you want to be loved," she said years earlier, "go into something else."There was a lighter mood in August 2009, on her 89th birthday, when President Barack Obama popped into in the White House briefing room unannounced. He led the roomful of reporters in singing "Happy Birthday to You" and gave her cupcakes. As it happened, it was the president's birthday too, his 48th.Thomas was at the forefront of women's achievements in journalism. She was one of the first female reporters to break out of the White House "women's beat" — the soft stories about presidents' kids, wives, their teas and their hairdos — and cover the hard news on an equal footing with men.She became the first female White House bureau chief for a wire service when UPI named her to the position in 1974. She was also the first female officer at the National Press Club, where women had once been barred as members and she had to fight for admission into the 1959 luncheon speech where Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev warned: "We will bury you."The belligerent Khrushchev was an unlikely ally in one sense. He had refused to speak at any Washington venue that excluded women, she said.Thomas fought, too, for a more open presidency, resisting all moves by a succession of administrations to restrict press access."People will never know how hard it is to get information," Thomas told an interviewer, "especially if it's locked up behind official doors where, if politicians had their way, they'd stamp TOP SECRET on the color of the walls."Born in Winchester, Ky., to Lebanese immigrants, Thomas was the seventh of nine children. It was in high school, after working on the student newspaper, that she decided she wanted to become a reporter.After graduating from Detroit's Wayne University (now Wayne State University), Thomas headed straight for the nation's capital. She landed a $17.50-a-week position as a copy girl, with duties that included fetching coffee and doughnuts for editors at the Washington Daily News.United Press — later United Press International — soon hired her to write local news stories for the radio wire. Her assignments were relegated at first to women's news, society items and celebrity profiles.Her big break came after the 1960 election that sent Kennedy to the White House, and landed Thomas her first assignment related to the presidency. She was sent to Palm Beach, Fla., to cover the vacation of the president-elect and his family.JFK's successor, Lyndon Johnson, complained that he learned of his daughter Luci's engagement from Thomas's story.Bigger and better assignments would follow for Thomas, among them President Richard M. Nixon's breakthrough trip to China in 1972.When the Watergate scandal began consuming Nixon's presidency, Martha Mitchell, the notoriously unguarded wife of the attorney general, would call Thomas late at night to unload her frustrations at what she saw as the betrayal of her husband John by the president's men.It was also during the Nixon administration that the woman who scooped so many others was herself scooped — by the first lady. Pat Nixon was the one who announced to the Washington press corps that Thomas was engaged to Douglas Cornell, chief White House correspondent for UPI's archrival, AP.They were married in 1971. Cornell died 11 years later.Thomas stayed with UPI for 57 years, until 2000, when the company was purchased by News World Communications, which was founded by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, leader of the Unification Church.At age 79, Thomas was soon hired as a Washington-based columnist for newspaper publisher Hearst Corp.A self-described liberal, Thomas made no secret of her ill feelings for the final president she covered — the second President Bush. "He is the worst president in all of American history," she told the Daily Breeze of Torrance, Calif.Thomas also was critical of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, asserting that the deaths of innocent people should hang heavily on Bush's conscience."We are involved in a war that is becoming more dubious every day," she said in a speech to thousands of students at Brigham Young University in September 2003. "I thought it was wrong to invade a country without any provocation."Some students walked out of the lecture. She won over others with humorous stories from her "ringside seat" to history.In March 2005, she confronted Bush with the proposition that "your decision to invade Iraq has caused the deaths of thousands of Americans and Iraqis" and every justification for the attack proved false."Why did you really want to go to war?" she demanded.When Bush began explaining his rationale, she interjected: "They didn't do anything to you, or to our country.""Excuse me for a second," Bush replied. "They did. The Taliban provided safe haven for al-Qaida. That's where al-Qaida trained.""I'm talking about Iraq," she said.Her strong opinions finally ended her career.After a visit to the White House, David Nesenoff, a rabbi and independent filmmaker, asked Thomas on May 27, 2010, whether she had any comments on Israel. "Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine," she replied. "Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not Germany, it's not Poland," she continued. Asked where they should go, she answered, "They should go home." When asked where's home, Thomas replied: "Poland, Germany and America and everywhere else."The resulting controversy brought widespread rejection of her remarks. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called them "offensive and reprehensible." Many Jews were offended by her suggestion that Israelis should "go home" to Germany, Poland and America because Israel was initially settled in 1948 by Jews who had survived or escaped Hitler's attempt to kill all the Jews in Germany and in neighboring conquered countries.Within days, she retired from her job at Hearst.Nicholas F. Benton, the owner and editor of the Falls Church News-Press, approached her about writing again. Benton, who had published Thomas' column for years when she was syndicated, said Thomas was initially dubious about continuing to write for the free weekly paper, which at the time had a circulation around 25,000."She said, 'You don't want me. I'm poison," he said in a telephone interview Saturday.He responded that he could handle any criticism, and her column started running in January 2011. She continued to write about national issues, from Social Security to the State of the Union address and the low capital gains tax, which she blamed for creating "a bigger divide between the haves and the have-nots, leaving not much of a middle class in America."Benton said some of his advertisers got threatening calls, but he said he received more positive letters than negative ones by "quite a wide margin." And Benton said she continued to be "sharp as a tack," sometimes asking if she could get her column in after deadline because she wanted to monitor some late-breaking development. She wrote for the paper for a year, until her health prevented her from continuing."She was just the kind of person who really did want to fight to the finish," he said of her return to writing.___

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HomeAPN Man charged with murder after woman assaulted in 1990 dies Published: Tuesday, July 30, 2013 at 8:07 p.m. A Mills River man was arrested Tuesday and charged with first-degree murder after police say a woman he was convicted of assaulting in 1990 died in December from her injuries. Kenneth Nelson Guthrie, 50, of 161 Queens Creek Drive, was charged by detectives with the Henderson County Sheriff's Office Violent Crimes Unit in the death of Jacqueline Cain Maybin.Guthrie was convicted in 1991 of beating Maybin, who was left paralyzed and bound to a wheelchair. Guthrie served four years of a 20-year sentence. Maybin died Dec. 18, 2012. The Chief Medical Examiner's Office determined the manner of death to be homicide, according to a news release issued Tuesday evening by the Sheriff's Office, and that the cause of death was directly related to the assault. A grand jury recently indicted Guthrie for first-degree murder resulting from the Dec. 23, 1990 assault. He is being held in the Henderson County Detention Facility without bond, and his first court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday. His family members were in tears Tuesday night as they gathered to support each other in a dark hour they thought had long since passed. “We were just hoping that it was all over. We went on with our lives and we were very sorry for what happened to her,” said Guthrie's wife of 19 years, Mary Ann Guthrie. “He did not murder her. He should not be charged with first-degree murder.“He does not deserve this. He's a good man. We have tons of people that will tell you what a good man he is. He's a wonderful provider for our daughter,” she added in between sobs. “I will never believe that he beat her... I do not believe that what happened 20-something years ago is the reason that she died.”She said her phone was ringing constantly with supporters and friends wanting to help after news of her husband's arrest hit the community. Kenneth Guthrie, a 1981 graduate of West Henderson High, had rebuilt his life after prison and became a contractor, his wife said Tuesday. “He's very well-known in the Mills River community for his craftsmanship and his integrity,” said his sister, Lisa Worsham. “We are behind him 100 percent. We just pray to God that this will all come out and it will be over because he is a brother, he's a father... he served his time and it's done ... We will get him back. We will prevail over this.” Mary Ann Guthrie said she wished they could have had more of a chance to tell him they loved him before he was arrested.“He's my daddy... I know he didn't do this,” said his 17-year-old daughter, Misty Guthrie. “I know that he's OK and that I'll get to see him soon.”“He's loved by everyone in his family. He's never known a stranger and he would do anything for anyone at any given time,” said his niece, Karie Salser.“He's never laid a hand on me. He's a wonderful husband,” Mary Ann Guthrie said. “I want him home where he belongs.”Trial testimonyNewspaper clippings from Guthrie's 1991 trial tell Maybin's story of what happened the night she was injured. She testified during the trial that the two argued after attending a Christmas party Dec. 23, 1990.After being asked to leave the party, the couple argued while driving home, Maybin testified. Maybin said she jerked the wheel and the truck ran off the road. The two got out of the truck and Guthrie began beating her, she said.Guthrie kicked her with his cowboy boots and dragged her, Maybin testified, and she remembered being loaded into the back of the truck and later waking up in an Asheville hospital's intensive care unit.Guthrie told the jury he and Maybin argued and that he slapped her in the face. But he said she sustained her injuries during the accident.Charles Loomis, a brain and spinal cord surgeon who also testified, told the jury Maybin's injuries were not consistent with a vehicle accident.The Times-News article also describes Maybin's reaction to the doctor's testimony.“Sitting in her wheelchair behind the district attorney, Maybin sobbed as Loomis told jurors that her life expectancy is considerably shorter now that she is paralyzed from the chest down,” according to the article. “He said skin, lung and heart complications caused by paralysis often shorten paraplegic's lives.”In 2002, Maybin's family members were afraid she would die when fluid started to build up in her body. Maybin endured constant pain while lying paralyzed over the years, her sister, Racheal Cain, told the Times-News in a story published June 22, 2002. Her family had to roll Maybin over at night to keep her from developing bed sores. Then-District Attorney Jeff Hunt said in the article that if Maybin died, it would be difficult to prove to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that the injuries Guthrie inflicted were responsible. The years that have passed since her injuries mean other circumstances could be linked to her eventual death, he said.Reach Weaver at [email protected] or 828-694-7867.

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by SERAINE PAGE, Central Kitsap Reporter Staff Writer Jan 16, 2014 at 9:44AM Man calls deputies and asks if he’s in trouble for stealing A 22-year-old man asked deputies if he was in trouble after he stole five firearms from an old friend’s family residence. Last week, deputies arrived to a residence where guns had been taken from the family room and an upstairs room. Several tools were also missing from the garage. A handwritten note asking for the gun owner’s son “to call him for permission to borrow a chainsaw” was found outside the front door and was signed by Chandler Ames. The note had the man’s cell phone number on it. Deputies contacted Ames’ mother at her home, and she told deputies her son no longer lived there. She later phoned deputies and told them she was trying to get her son to come to the house. Her son came back, apologized for taking the items from the residence, and left three of the five firearms and most of the tools, states the report. He later called deputies to ask if he was in trouble, and he waited at his mother’s residence to be arrested. Ames told deputies the last two firearms were at his residence and gave them permission to retrieve them. He later changed his story and said he sold them in Bremerton at Borner’s Firearms. Ames was booked on residential burglary charges, and three counts of theft of a firearm. His bail was set at $200,000. Walmart trespasser visits store, steals again A Bremerton man who decided to ignore a Walmart trespass was arrested after stealing from the store last week. The 26-year-old was already in handcuffs when Kitsap County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at Walmart. Prior to their arrival, Cencom confirmed the man had a felony DOC escape warrant for his arrest, along with a misdemeanor warrant for theft three. After his rights were read, deputies searched the jacket that a loss prevention officer watched the man place a wrench set in. Deputies showed him a copy of a trespass notice that was issued in Sept. 2012 that banned the man from “entering any Walmart store in the future,” states the report. The man told deputies the judge told him it was only valid for a year. A search inside the man’s jacket also turned up a vial of “Narcan” which is “used to counteract the effects of opiates like heroin,” states the report. Deputies also discovered a folding knife with a hard brown substance similar to that of black tar heroin. A test later confirmed the substance to be heroin. He was booked on possession of heroin, burglary two and his warrants. Bail was set at $50,000. Man without license crashes wife’s shipmate’s car A Bremerton man using his wife’s deployed shipmate’s car crashed the vehicle while speeding over a hill. Jesse Genereux, 27, turned out to be driving without a license, proven when he could only show officers a California ID card. He also had a warrant for DUI, according to a Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office report. The car plowed through seven mailboxes and a power pole in Poulsbo. Inside the vehicle were two children and the driver’s wife, who complained of back and neck injuries. After being contacted by a deputy regarding the accident, he was arrested when he told the deputy he had not taken care of his DUI warrant. Genereux’s wife told deputies that she allowed her shipmate to keep the car at the couple’s home while she was deployed. No one had permission to drive the car. SERAINE PAGE, Central Kitsap Reporter Staff Writer [email protected] or 360-308-9161, ext. 5062 Tweet Area Lights and Sirens Area Lights and Sirens EMAIL NEWSLETTERS

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Police identify man fatally shot on Roehrer Avenue Drug busts make dent in supply of heroin, opioids State issues smog alert for Wedneday in Western New York 18-year-old pleads guilty to two charges in death of girlfriend on Ellicott Creek Sixteen stores cited for underage alcohol sales View more » Fishing Line by Will Elliott (May 24) Bills GM Doug Whaley: Humans are not supposed to play football Inside the NHL: With a month to go, Leafs’ sights set on Matthews Amherst’s Devlin receives DiPaolo Award High School Extra (May 24): Nardin, Sacred Heart in softball final; Springville advances on 1-hitter View more » U.S. plans Saipan air base as part of bid to encircle China By John ReedFOREIGN POLICY on August 21, 2013 - 7:38 PM WASHINGTON – The U.S. military is encircling China with a chain of air bases and military ports. The latest link: a small airstrip on the tiny Pacific island of Saipan. The U.S. Air Force is planning to lease 33 acres on the island for the next 50 years to build a “divert airfield” on an old World War II air base there. But the residents don’t want it. And the Chinese are in no mood to be surrounded by Americans.The Pentagon’s big, new strategy for the 21st century is called Air-Sea Battle, a concept that’s nominally about combining air and naval forces to punch through the formidable defenses of nations like China or Iran.A very concrete part of this concept is being put into place in the Pacific.An important but often-overlooked part of Air-Sea Battle calls for the military to operate from small, bare bones bases in the Pacific that its forces can disperse to in case their main bases are targeted by Chinese ballistic missiles.Saipan would be used by American jets in case access to the U.S. super base at Guam “or other Western Pacific airfields is limited or denied,” reads an Air Force document on the impact that building such fields on Saipan and nearby Tinian would have on the environment there.Saipan residents want the Air Force to use the historic air bases on Tinian, which the U.S. Marines are already refurbishing and flying F/A-18 Hornet fighters out of, on an occasional basis.The Air Force wants to expand the Saipan International Airport – built on the skeleton of a World War II base used by Japan and later the United States – to accommodate cargo, fighter and tanker aircraft along with up to 700 support personnel for “periodic divert landings, joint military exercises, and joint and combined humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts,” according to Air Force documents.The Air Force plans to build additional aircraft parking space, hangars, fuel storage tanks and ammunition storage facilities, as well as other improvements to the historic airfield.It also plans to send aircraft on regular deployments to bases ranging from Australia to India as part of its bulked up force in the Pacific.The Saipan announcement comes as Chinese defense minister, Gen. Chang Wanquan, visited Washington to talk with U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. The topic of U.S. bases in the Pacific didn’t come up during a joint news conference they held Wednesday, but Wanquan said in response to a question about the U.S. military focus on the Pacific that “China is a peace-loving nation, and we hope that [America’s] strategy does not target a specific country in the region.”While the U.S. insists Air-Sea Battle and the pivot to Asia isn’t about China, these bases are a check against Chinese expansion into the Pacific, said Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “China will be much more discreet throughout the entire region because U.S. power is already there, it’s visible; you’re not talking theory, you’re already there in practice,” he said. Frantic search underway off coast of Egypt for missing EgyptAir flight Clinton ekes out narrow victory in Kentucky; Sanders takes Oregon Connect with us

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Mizzima News: KHRG responds to UN criticism – Christopher Smith Thu 26 Apr 2007 Filed under: News,On The Border Responding to reaction from the United Nations Office of the Humanitarian Coordinator in Burma critical of a recent publication, the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) has issued a statement defending the method and validity of its report. The report, entitled “Development by Decree: The politics of poverty and control in Karen State” and released on Tuesday, contests that development projects inside Burma are used by the military regime as a means of further militarization while placing local communities in a position of heightened vulnerability to human rights abuses. The KHRG believes that the international community too often overlooks the potential for abuses when considering development projects. The report calls into question the merits of certain development projects partly facilitated by UN agencies, specifically citing the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific in its support toward the Asian Highway Project, alleging that the project has directly led to land confiscation and incidences of forced labor. Additionally, the report warns that the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) risks abetting in rights violations through its assistance toward agricultural programs. The FAO is stated to have already awarded the government with $14 million in financial aid for an Oil Crop Cultivation Programme. In the UN statement issued on Thursday, the KHRG report is brought into question for the incorporation of supposedly inaccurate and dated statistics, while critiquing the KHRG for not discussing the content and accuracy of its material with the UN prior to publication. The response from the KHRG to the UN position states that the KHRG did “communicate with various UN agencies regarding some of the issues raised in the report including the Office of the UN Humanitarian Coordinator and the Food and Agricultural Organization.” The KHRG goes to lengths to make it clear that the main focus of their report is to give voice to the local villagers most affected; a voice the KHRG believes is “very seldom heard.” With respect to the claim of inaccurate and dated material, the KHRG stands by the information accumulated from local villagers. They do, however, welcome the UN to forward specific examples of what they believe to be factually incorrect information, to which the KHRG says it will respond “with relevant information from the local villagers targeted by development projects.” Additionally, the KHRG response is highly critical of the capacity of the UN to adhere to its stated position of delivering aid only with strict attention paid to basic humanitarian principles. The KHRG argues that such a position is untenable from the onset, as any such adherence must automatically include the voice of the people. The basic parameters established by the ruling junta for the delivery and logistics of assistance are deemed to make the truthful involvement and empowerment of the local population impossible. Further, “the principle of neutrality, which requires aid to be provided based on need rather than political considerations, is violated by UN agencies’ inability to deliver aid cross-border from neighbouring countries or from central Burma to anyone living in areas not under firm SPDC control.” To give additional weight to its concerns over the role of the FAO, the KHRG notes the connection between those purported to have engaged in rights abuses and those with whom UN agencies are obliged to work. Specifically, the KHRG challenges the UN to justify its working relationship with figures such as U Htay Oo, Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) Secretary General and Minister for Agriculture and Irrigation. By means of his former affiliation he is implicated in rights violations allegedly orchestrated and carried out by the USDA, including violent attacks on rights activists and pro-democracy campaigners. By virtue of his latter title, he is a crucial implementing partner with the FAO in their Oil Crop Cultivation Programme. The KHRG does reiterate that it recognizes and appreciates the complexities of trying to deliver assistance inside Burma, and simply urges that the international community give priority to “devising an effective means of conducting human rights impact assessments”, an approach which of necessity must incorporate the voices of the local population. Thursday, Apr 26th, 2007 at 2:53 pm News and On The Border

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Boy riding skateboard struck by vehicle, dies CLAIRTON, Allegheny County — Police are investigating a traffic accident that claimed the life of a young Pittsburgh-area boy.Officers in Jefferson Hills said 8-year-old Connor Zink was riding a skateboard when he was struck by a vehicle shortly after 9 p.m. Friday.The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office said he was taken to Jefferson Regional Medical Center, where he died less than an hour later.Officials said homicide detectives are assisting Jefferson Hills police in the investigation.

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Parties settle lawsuit over 90-year-old dam Environmentalists who sued a Siskiyou County, Calif., water district over the operation of a roughly 90-year-old dam have reached a legal settlement with the district. The deal will result in only a slight decrease of irrigation water for area farms in average water years. Published on December 23, 2013 3:34PM MONTAGUE, Calif. — Environmentalists who sued a water district here over the operation of a roughly 90-year-old dam here have settled the case with the district.Klamath Riverkeeper and its ally, the Karuk Tribes, gained a slight decrease in diversions for irrigation from Shastina Reservoir to preserve the Shasta River, a key tributary to the beleaguered Klamath River.Historically, the Montague Water Conservation District has diverted about 22,000 acre-feet per year. The agreement allows the district to divert 20,500 acre-feet in average water years, though diversions could fluctuate depending on wet or dry conditions, the tribes explained in a news release.District officials said Dec. 23 the terms of the agreement are consistent with their conservation goals. The district maintains its operations provide substantial benefits to the fisheries within the watershed.The Orleans, Calif.-based Klamath Riverkeeper filed an Endangered Species Act lawsuit in federal court in Sacramento last year. The suit called on the irrigation district to remedy the Dwinnell Dam’s impacts to coho salmon runs, which the group asserts are on the verge of extinction.Klamath Riverkeeper argued that the dam, which creates the Shastina Reservoir and provides water to agricultural and residential customers, has caused a loss of 20 percent of habitat for coho in the Shasta River since it was built in the 1920s.The Dwinnell Dam is not one of the four slated for removal as part of the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement.

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Become a Supporter We Get Support From: Become a Supporter Daily Schedule Printable Weekly Schedule (PDF) News Station: Sunday, March 3, 2013 « Saturday Monday » International news, business, sport, analysis and information from around the world from the BBC. 10:00 a.m. For two decades Tom and Ray Magliozzi, aka Click and Clack, and the Tappet brothers, have been America's funniest auto mechanics. Tom passed away in Nov. 2014, but their legacy lives on in a mixture of clips from their shows through the years. 11:00 a.m. Each week, an entertaining assembly of panelists plays games designed to test their knowledge of the week’s news, as well as their wit. Featuring comedy sketches, music, and Garrison Keillor's signature monologue, "The News from Lake Wobegon." Hosted by Lynne Rossetto Kasper, The Splendid Table is public radio's culinary, culture, and lifestyle program that celebrates food and its ability to touch the lives and feed the souls of everyone. An award-winning weekly radio show on all things media, hosted by Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield. Marketplace Weekend from American Public Media is a weekly hour-long program on the topics of personal finance, money, retirement, and health care. NPR’s daily afternoon news program offers an in-depth presentation of the day’s news, with some of the nation’s best reporting, commentary, and analysis. Hosted locally by Devin Yamanaka with statewide news anchored by Ed Joyce. The California Report provides daily coverage of issues, trends, and public policy decisions affecting California and its diverse population. Smiley & West Smiley & West from Public Radio International (PRI) is an energetic radio program that is a fusion of thought provoking, intelligent and stimulating dialogue on every subject from news and politics to entertainment and culture. Says You Says You is a panel game show of bluff and bluster, words and whimsy. Fresh Air Weekend Everything you love about Fresh Air — tailored for Saturday and Sunday. International news, business, sport, analysis and information from around the world from the BBC. We Get Support From:

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Of all tales of the supernatural, this one is perhaps the best documented, the most disturbing and the most difficult to explain. The Princess of Amen-Ra lived some 1,500 years before Christ. When she died, she was laid in an ornate wooden coffin and buried deep in a vault at Luxor, on the banks of the Nile. In the late 1890s, four rich, young, Englishmen visiting the excavations at Luxor were invited to buy an exquisitely fashioned mummy case containing the remains of Princess of Amen-Ra. They drew lots. The man who won paid several thousand pounds and had the coffin taken to his hotel. A few hours later, he was seen walking out towards the desert. He never returned. The next day, one of the remaining three men was shot by an Egyptian servant accidentally. His arm was so severely wounded it had to be amputated. The third man in the foursome found on his return home that the bank holding his entire savings had failed. The fourth man suffered a severe illness, lost his job and was reduced to selling matches in the street. Nevertheless, the coffin reached England (causing other misfortunes along the way), where it was bought by a London businessman . After three of his family members had been injured in a road accident and his house damaged by fire, the businessman donated it to the British Museum . As the coffin was being unloaded from a truck in the museum courtyard, the truck suddenly went into reverse and trapped a passer-by . Then as the casket was being lifted up the stairs by two workmen, one fell and broke his leg . The other, apparently in perfect health, died unaccountably two days later . Once the Princess was installed in the Egyptian Room, trouble really started . Museum's night watchmen frequently heard frantic hammering and sobbing from the coffin . Other exhibits in the room were also often hurled about at night . One watchman died on duty; causing the other watchmen wanting to quit. Cleaners refused to go near the Princess too . When a visitor derisively flicked a dust cloth at the face painted on the coffin, his child died of measles soon afterwards. Finally, the authorities had the mummy carried down to the basement . Figuring it could not do any harm down there. Within a week, one of the helpers was seriously ill, and the supervisor of the move was found dead on his desk. By now, the papers had heard of it. A journalist photographer took a picture of the mummy case and when he developed it, the painting on the coffin was of a horrifying, human face. The photographer went home then, locked his bedroom door and shot himself. Soon afterwards, the museum sold the mummy to a private collector. After continual misfortune (and deaths), the owner banished it to the attic. A well known authority on the occult, Madame Helena Blavatsky, visited the premises. Upon entry, she was seized with a shivering fit and searched the house for the source of "an evil influence of incredible intensity". She finally came to the attic and found the mummy case. "Can you exorcise this evil spirit ?" asked the owner . "There is no such thing as exorcism. Evil remains evil forever . Nothing can be done about it. I implore you to get rid of this evil as soon as possible". But no British museum would take the mummy; the fact that almost 20 people had met with misfortune, disaster or death from handling the casket, in barely 10 yrs, was now well known. Eventually, a hard-headed American archaeologist (who dismissed the happenings as quirks of circumstance), paid a handsome price for the mummy and arranged for its removal to New York . In April of 1912, the new owner escorted its treasure aboard a sparkling, new White Star liner about to make its maiden voyage to New York. On the night of April 14, amid scenes of unprecedented horror, the Princess of Amen-Ra accompanied 1,500 passengers to their deaths at the bottom of the Atlantic. The name of the ship was Titanic. OTHER STRANGE STORIES ABOUT THE TITANIC Would you believe this appeared in a 1993 newspaper?? There was a story going round that the number on the hull of the Titanic was 390904 which, if you turned round (and maybe stood on your head?), spelled out the message "NO POPE". This of course is untrue - The real hull no. of the Titanic was 131,428. Two seamen said that they'd seen six men shot down like dogs. A second-class survivor "Emilio Portualuppi" told a story upon his return to New York of spending hours riding a large block of ice. A seaman on the Carpathia told of how a Newfoundland dog called "Rigel" had jumped from the sinking ship and somehow miraculously escorted a lifeboat to the Carpathia. The dog barked as it approached the Carpathia letting everyone know it was coming. Another weird story that appeared in the newspapers was about six Chinese survivors who had apparently hidden beneath the seats of one of the Titanic's lifeboats. No one knew they were there until the lifeboats had been take on board the Carpathia. It was also reported that two others who were hidden got crushed by some fat ladies who were sitting above them. The other 6 Chinese survived due to the fact that lighter ladies were sitting on top of them. Marie Young told of how she'd seen the iceberg and hour before the collision. A banker from Philadelphia was under the impression that he'd managed to take over the Carpathia's wireless during the trip back. One first class passenger "George Brayton" told a newspaper of his impression: "The moon was shining and a number of us who were enjoying the crisp air were promenading about the deck. Captain Smith was on the bridge when the first cry from the lookout came that there was an iceberg ahead. It may have been 300 feet high when I saw it. The accident happened at about 10:30 p.m. About midnight I think came the first boiler explosion. Then for the first time, I think, Captain Smith began to get worried..." Talk about Tall tales - this one is a BEAUTY! I keep getting this story submitted to me as a true ghost story. It's pretty obvious that it's a tall tale of the Titanic and never really happened - a dead giveaway is the fact that the Titanic hit a bloody big Iceberg which sank it, which had nothing to do with a Mummy in the cargo. There was no Princess of Amen-ra - and she definitely wasn't buried at Luxor. I have seen this story on the net everywhere - you can't really miss it. From what I can tell this story was started by some newspaper in New York - they ran a story about the Titanic being sunk by the curse of a mummy (an Egyptian King) in the cargo hold. They stated that the mummy was being smuggled to America by an unscrupulous art dealer who wanted to sell the mummy to a museum in New York for $500,000.00. The money was to be split amongst himself and the thieves who ransacked the tomb of this Egyptian King. Now it seems that Anubis (the Egyptian God of the dead) was apparently totally unhappy about having one of his Egyptian Kings sold off and smuggled to New York so he took it upon himself to sink the Titanic and see that the mummy went to the bottom of the sea along with the ship and most of it's passengers. Hence the Curse of the Mummy was born. Other versions of this story tell of the mummy being placed in a lifeboat as the Titanic was sinking. It eventually reaches New York and causes all the usual havoc so it is sent back to Egypt on the "Empress of Ireland" which also sank with a great loss of life. The mummy also managed to survive this sinking by once again being placed in a life boat. It was then attempted to resend the mummy back to Egypt on the "Lusitania", but this time the ship sank and took the mummy along with it. The mummy supposedly now resides at the bottom of the ocean in the "Lusitania's" cargo hold. [home] [the unexplained] Before you e-mail us - read Castle of Spirits FAQ Castle of Spirits its graphics and contents are all © 2002 Castle of Spirits Copying or duplicating of anything off this site PROHIBITED

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Striking Chronicle Herald journalists set up online news site The Local Xpress was launched Saturday by the workers represented by the Halifax Typographical Union Posted: Feb 01, 2016 3:54 PM AT Last Updated: Feb 01, 2016 3:54 PM AT The Local Xpress is the work of the Halifax Typographical Union's 61 members that are on strike from the Chronicle Herald. (www.localxpress.ca) Related Stories Chronicle Herald's contract proposal 'highly unusual' and could kill the union Should the Irvings buy the Chronicle Herald? As a work stoppage by newsroom employees at the Halifax Chronicle Herald moves into its second week, the striking editorial staff have established an online news site meant to keep their names and work in the public eye. The Local Xpress was launched Saturday by the workers represented by the Halifax Typographical Union. Union vice-president Frank Campbell said the idea is to let the public know that the striking journalists are still willing and able to do quality work. "The Xpress is a way for us to take back our voice, take back our vision and to take back our names," said Campbell. He said it's hoped there will be daily contributions by union members who are volunteering their time. Campbell said the union's intent isn't to compete against the paper, because there just aren't the resources available to do it. "We're not going to be able to produce content to the extent that the Chronicle Herald will or other mainline news sources," said Campbell. "We just want to keep ourselves out there and give the public some examples of what we can do when we are at work.' Off the job since Jan. 23 Chronicle Herald management did not reply to a request for comment. The 61 editorial staff have been off the job since Jan. 23. The union is striking against a list of contract concessions which Herald management says are needed to cope with economic challenges affecting the North American newspaper industry. Among a host of proposed changes, the newspaper wants to reduce wages, lengthen working hours, and alter future pension benefits. The union has said it would remain a union "in name only" if it agrees to more than 1,232 changes to the existing contract. Campbell said there have been no talks with management for about a week. "There are some e-mails and texts going back and forth, but nothing significant enough to get us back to the table," he said. © The Canadian Press, 2016 Report Typo or Error

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Heroes’ Day - Charter'97 :: News from Belarus - Belarusian News - Republic of Belarus - Minsk Heroes’ Day 27.11.2012, 8:40 On 27 November 1920 the warfare started between the Slutsk BPR’s regiments and the Red Army. Belarusian patriots celebrate this day as the Day of Heroes.The cessation of the war between Soviet Russia and Poland gave a possibility to renew the fight for Belarus’ independence. At the territories left by the Polish troops, but not yet occupied by Bolsheviks, local self-government bodies were formed. In November 1920 the Slutsk Council was created. It proclaimed the restoration of the authority of Belarusian Public Republic. According to the Council’s decision, the formation of military brigades out of the locals started.Battles between the squadrons, formed mostly out of the peasants of the Slutsk district, and Bolsheviks lasted for roughly a month. The situation on the front was reversed only by the decision to transfer additional Red Army regiments from Central Russia to the Belarusian territory. At the end of December 1920 the insurgents had to back off to the territory of Western Belarus, which was controlled by the Polish military.The “Slutski Zbroiny Chyn” (Slutsk Military Resistance) became a role model for many other citizens of the country. The Belarusians continued a partisan fight against Bolsheviks after the Red Army occupied the territory of the Slutsk district. Write your comment 38 Want anything to add? Сontact us

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Editorial: Alcohol ban on river worth a try Our view: A booze ban on the river on Labor Day weekend sends the needed message to sloppy visitors that the party's over. In a vote that was much closer than it should have been, three Glenn County supervisors decided that trying to prevent another death on the Sacramento River was better than doing nothing at all. We've been urging Glenn County supervisors to adopt an alcohol ban on the river for Labor Day weekend even before 20-year-old Brett Olson from the Bay Area vanished and drowned during the float last September. Butte County supervisors had voted in favor of a ban, but Glenn County residents had not. The law didn't go into effect because the river splits both counties. Glenn County Sheriff Larry Jones urged the supervisors to give it a try in their first public vote on the matter since August 2011, and it passed on a 3-2 vote Tuesday. The ordinance needs final approval at a future meeting, but we applaud John Viegas, Michael Murray and Leigh McDaniel for their concern about both public safety and the environmental mess the float has become. Supervisors Dwight Foltz and Steve Soeth voted no. Foltz said last fall that there's a law against underage drinking yet Olson still died. He said there are "too many laws already" and that "people have to take responsibility for themselves." He wasn't about to change his mind. Soeth also said there are too many laws on the books, and wasn't convinced this one would solve the problem. We just don't understand the argument that kids will be kids and do what they want anyway, or that getting drunk on the river is some sort of constitutional right. Using the same rationale, should people be allowed to drink and drive? Or ignore speed limits? Do we really need all those stop signs? Sometimes laws are necessary, and this Labor Day float ceased becoming just a good time when Brett Olson drowned with evidence of alcohol and cocaine in his system. It was a tragedy that was predicted years in advance. We're glad three supervisors have the good sense to try to prevent another sad scene like the one that unfolded last September, when Olson's family and friends held out hope for a week that he would be found alive. We don't think for a minute that the float will now only include people who are stone-cold sober. Some people will drink beforehand. Some will drink afterward. Some will find a way to drink during it. But at least Butte and Glenn counties have sent a message that the party's over. A booze ban on the river on Labor Day weekend might move the party to the weekend before school starts, or might move it to another stretch of river on Labor Day weekend. In other words, it might not help at all. But it certainly won't hurt. People will still be able to float. You don't need to bring a case of Keystone Light down the river to have a good time. But we'll see next September how many people were there for the river experience, and how many were there for the party. Our hope is that the floating party that attracted young adults from all over the state becomes a tame locals-only event again.

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Judge allows 911 tapes in Casey Anthony trialBy the CNN Wire Staff 911 tapes allowed in Casey Anthony trialSTORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: A Florida judge has allowed the 911 tapes to stay in evidenceMother: I didn't want police thinking I was "some crazy grandmother"The defense argues that taped phone calls are hearsay and should not be admittedProsecutors say calls are critical to their case against Anthony Orlando, Florida (CNN) -- Prosecutors can play tapes of 911 calls made by Florida murder suspect Casey Anthony's mother after she learned her granddaughter was missing, a judge ruled Thursday. Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony, admitted during a hearing Thursday in Orlando that she had made exaggerated accusations about her daughter in those calls in a bid to get police to her home. But Circuit Judge Belvin Perry ruled that Cindy Anthony was trying to use calls to police as a "ploy" to get her daughter to tell her what she knew about the missing 2-year-old Caylee Anthony. Defense lawyers sought to have thrown out of court as hearsay, but Perry found the tapes were not being used to prove the facts of the case. "Whether they are true or false really has no bearing," Perry said. "They were designed to elicit statements from the defendant in this case, to ascertain the whereabouts of the victim in this particular case." Casey Anthony is charged with capital murder in the 2008 death of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee's death. The girl was reported missing two years ago Thursday, and defense attorneys were trying to keep recordings of her mother Cindy's three 911 calls out of evidence. Facing her daughter in an Orlando courtroom, Cindy Anthony said she told police "whatever I was thinking at the time to get them out there" -- including the claim, made in her first of three 911 calls, that her daughter had stolen a car from her. Video: Cindy Anthony's frantic 911 calls Video: Anthony's attorney on 911 calls Criminal Trials "I wanted to speak to a police officer," Cindy Anthony said. "And I didn't think that if I said that she wouldn't take me to see my granddaughter, that they thought her and I might just be having an argument and think that I was some crazy grandmother and not come out and talk to me." But she testified that she was in a panic after Casey Anthony told her that she hadn't seen her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, in a month. Cindy Anthony told police her daughter had stolen money from her and that she had asked Casey Anthony to return her car to her brother Lee, from whom she had purchased the Pontiac but never finished paying. She said she did not intend to mislead police with the calls, however. And by the third call, she told investigators that her daughter's vehicle smelled "like there's been a dead body in the damn car." And Lee Anthony testified Thursday that he tried to get more information out of his sister while their "frantic" mother yelled at her. "She was very angry," he said. "Her first reaction was she had a clenched fist and hit the bed my sister was sitting on and said, 'What did you do? We could have found her 31 days ago.' " Caylee's skeletal remains were found in the woods about a quarter mile from the Anthony home in December 2008. Prosecutors say they plan to show Casey Anthony lied repeatedly about her daughter's fate, and that the 911 calls are a critical part of that progression. The Anthony family had not seen the toddler or her mother since June 16, 2008. When Cindy Anthony found her daughter a month later, Caylee wasn't with her. Cindy Anthony threatened to call the police, hoping it would force Casey Anthony to say where her daughter was. After two calls to the police, Casey Anthony admitted to her brother that she had not seen Caylee in 31 days and that she believed her daughter was with a nanny, Zenaida Gonzalez. The third and final call was placed immediately after Cindy Anthony overheard what Casey Anthony told her brother. Cindy Anthony seemed to be agitated and excited as she told the dispatcher that her granddaughter had been missing for a month. Cindy Anthony has since said that the odor emanating from the car could have been from rotting garbage. However, forensic examiners have concluded that Caylee's decomposing body was in the trunk of the car at some point in late June 2008. Thursday's hearing was also expected to focus on a motion from the defense. It will ask the judge to modify a ruling by Judge Stan Strickland, who stepped aside in April. The motion concerns a review of documents from Texas Equusearch, a private company that assisted in the search for then-missing Caylee. While Strickland's order allowed the defense attorneys to review thousands of documents created by Texas Equusearch, the attorneys were prohibited from taking notes during the review. The defense maintains the current arrangement is inefficient and it is seeking a more workable resolution.In Session Correspondent Beth Karas contributed to this report.

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Pelosi on CR Defunding Obamacare: ‘One of the Most Intentional Acts of Brutality’ By Melanie Hunter | September 20, 2013 | 11:04 AM EDT House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) (AP) (CNSNews.com) – In a speech from the House floor on Friday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) accused House Republicans of committing an act of “brutality” in pushing through a continuing resolution (CR) that will fund the rest of the federal government after Sept. 30 but will defund Obamacare. “Either you don’t know what you are doing or this is one of the most intentional acts of brutality that you have cooked up with stiff competition for that honor. It cuts billions of dollars again I say, from the National Institutes of Health, delaying important research and denying medical breakthroughs for future generations,” Pelosi said speaking on the House floor. Shortly after Pelosi spoke, the House voted 230 to 189 to approve the CR that defunds Obamacare. Because the current legislation funding the federal government expires on Sept. 30 (the last day of the federal fiscal year), Congress must enact a new law to allow the administration to spend money after that date. Article 1, Section 9, Clause 7 of the Constitution says: "No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law." For a bill authorizing spending from the Treasury to become law, it must be approved by the House of Representatives, and the Senate, and signed by the president. The CR approved by the Republican-controlled House today would authorize the administration to spend money on virtually all existing government programs--except Obamacare. Conservatives have called on Republicans in the House to pass such a CR as a way to stop the full implementation Obamacare, which otherwise will take place on January 1. In addition to calling this CR an act of "brutality," Pelosi also called it “a wolf in wolf’s clothing.” “It is a wolf in wolf’s clothing. The underlying bill to shut down government--the CR--is reason enough to object to it, because that bill will cost at least a million jobs in the course of next year, will cost a million jobs,” she said. “If the underlying bill were not bad enough, if there were not reason enough to say, ‘No, are you kidding? No,’ then they cloak it in wolf’s clothing and say they are going to defund the Affordable Care Act,” Pelosi said. FollowMelanie HunterBio | ArchiveMore from Melanie Hunter Printer-friendly version

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People are obsessed with celebrity-related items these days. So this next story shouldn't really surprise us as much as it does. But we still can't believe that someone would sink to this low. The L.A. County Sheriff's Department arrested an 18-year man named Jameson Witty yesterday and recommended that he be charged with grand theft and tampering with evidence. So what did he do? Well, shortly after The Fast & the Furious star Paul Walker died in a horrific car crash last Saturday, a tow truck hauled off the Porsche Carrera GT that Walker was driving in when he died so that police could evaluate it further. And Witty followed the tow truck, waited until it stopped at a red light, and then stole a piece of the car and drove off. But his crime didn't go unnoticed. The tow truck driver called police and reported the theft and police were eventually able to track down Witty on Thursday morning and arrest him. They're also planning on arresting a 25-year-old man who was with him at the time. We understand wanting to pay tribute to Walker right now. But stealing a piece of the car that he died in? That's just creepy. And sick. And weird. And disgusting. And, well, wrong. These guys deserve whatever is coming to them as a result of their actions. RELATED: 25 Craziest Car-Related Crimes of 2013 (So Far) RELATED: Paul Walker's Current and Former Co-Stars Tweet Their Condolences [via LA Weekly] Tags: News, Car Crimes, Paul Walker, Porsche, Rides Like Follow Chat SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER Enter Show Comments NowTrending

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Home Page »News »Local News » Embattled Postal Service looks to cost savings Embattled Postal Service looks to cost savings No Saturday service would end 150 years of tradition By Luke Groskopf Journal staff writer Butch Smith sorts mail Friday morning at the Cortez Post Office. The U.S. Postal Service announced last week it will end Saturday delivery of flat items - letters, bills, magazines - the week of Aug. 5. Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe caused a stir last Wednesday when he announced, at a press conference, that the U.S. Postal Service would stop Saturday delivery of letters, bills and magazines starting in August. The move prompted criticism from the letter carrier's union and confusion in Washington, D.C. as to whether Donahoe had the authority to make the change on his own. The USPS operates in a jurisdictional gray area, receiving no tax money but subject to Congressional oversight. It is mandated by Congress to serve every house in the country - no matter how remote - to deliver six days a week. Donahoe argued that public opinion was on his side - 70 percent of Americans supported dropping Saturday delivery in a July 2012 New York Times/CBS News poll - and that he had no other choice given unyielding financial woes. Although it turned a profit as recently as 2006, the Postal Service has been hemorrhaging money ever since. It recorded a loss of nearly $16 billion last year alone (or $36 million a day). The move to a five-day week is expected to save the agency an annual $2 billion.Shelley Rullestad, postmaster at the Cortez Post Office, said he thought Donohoe's announcement was meant to be a catalyst for Congress to act. A reform bill passed the U.S. Senate last April but stalled in the House of Representatives. Congress adjourned just after the new year, leaving the problem unsolved. "We're required by law to do things in this day and age that don't make good business sense," Rullestad said, referring to the $5.5 billion the USPS is obligated to pay into a fund each year since 2006 for future retiree health benefits. "No other agency, private or government, is required to do that."The benefits have grown so burdensome that the Postal Service missed and defaulted on its payments twice in 2012. Rullestad said dropping Saturday delivery is a sensible move given the decline in mail volume. As email replaces handwritten letters, magazine subscriptions go electronic, and online bill pay and banking gain in popularity, yearly circulation continues to drop. From a peak of 213 billion items in 2006, the USPS processed 160 billion last year. Package delivery, however, is on the rise, driven by e-commerce retailers like Amazon and eBay. "A large and growing part of our business is packages. We will continue to deliver those (on Saturdays)," Rullestad said. Prescription drugs will still be delivered on Saturdays too, as will letters sent via Priority Mail or Express Mail. If Congress does not intervene to stop Donahoe's gambit, one local issue to be ironed out is circulation of the Cortez Journal. Currently, subscribers outside the Cortez city limits have their newspaper dropped off by the Postal Service along with other mail. An end to Saturday service would mean not receiving the paper until Monday. The Journal is studying several options for distributing the Saturday edition in a timely manner. "We've known Saturday mail delivery eventually would be discontinued," said publisher Suzy Meyer. "Now we know when, if Congress lets this plan go forward. We have time to implement a strategy that will serve our readers and advertisers."Rullestad agreed, saying the five-month window will allow companies that currently rely on Saturday delivery to "develop contingency plans." Rullestad didn't believe any local layoffs of career carriers were imminent because of the five-day change, but said the need for "rotating carriers," also called T-6 carriers, would be diminished. Currently, rotating carriers fill gaps on days the full-time carriers are off. In recent years the Postal Service has tried to trim costs by limiting hours of operation and streamlining its workforce. Under political pressure, Donahoe last May backed off a proposed plan to shutter and consolidate 3,700 smaller locations, instead opting to reduce hours. Offices in Rico, Lewis, Yellow Jacket and Pleasant View were among those to survive calls for closure.More than 280,000 USPS positions have been eliminated since 2000 via layoffs, retirement incentives and attrition. [email protected]

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Unplugging Al-Manar TV by Greg Moses They are not even a dozen strong, but the Islamic activists (mostly Shiah women) who posted recent statements at Houston IndyMedia say they are backed by principles found in the First Amendment to the Constitution of the USA, Article 19 of United Nations Declarations of Human Rights, and Islamic principles, “which call for the pursuit of knowledge throughout one’s life and the dissemination of knowledge.” At the time that Houston activists posted their first statement Friday morning, the State Department had not yet announced its decision to place Hezbollah-backed television station Al-Manar on the terrorist watch list. But within hours, the decision had been announced and the Intelsat satellite company had stopped relaying the station’s signal to USA audiences. The year-old group known as Texas Muslims for Islamic Change (TXM4C) said on Friday that it was “dismayed at this development and considers it to be part of the American government’s assault on Constitutional rights.” On Sunday the group countered claims by the State Department that Al-Manar incited terrorist violence. “On the other hand, TXM4C a sees this as yet another step in America’s progression away from democratic values. To date, it has not seen properly documented evidence brought forward that would support the State Department’s claims that Al Manar ‘preaches violence and hatred’ or ‘serves to incite … terrorist violence’. Rather, this Houston-based group of Muslim thinkers and activists feels that the loss of access to Al-Manar will remove from the American people a valuable source of information about the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, governmental policies of countries around the world, and especially Islam.” Meanwhile, a Washington-based civil rights group on Friday pointed to a Cornell University study showing that 44 percent of Americans believe that the government of the USA should curtail the civil liberties of Muslims. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called on public officials to address rising levels of Islamophobia. A State Department spokesperson on Friday claimed that action against Al-Manar was justified because “terrorist activity” by Hezbollah was linked to “incitement” by Al-Manar television. “The designation is to put Al-Manar Television on the terrorist exclusion list because of its incitement of terrorist activity. Our law says that the organization can be put on the list if it commits or incites to commit any terrorist activity, and that is what we’ve found them,” said Richard Boucher. The terrorist exclusion list (TEL), authorized by Section 411 of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, authorizes the exclusion and deportation of aliens who support terrorist organizations. According to the State Department’s website, TEL also deters donation or contributions to named organizations, heightens public awareness and knowledge of terrorist organizations, alerts other governments to U.S. concerns about organizations engaged in terrorist activities, and stigmatizes and isolates designated terrorist organizations. Journalists at the State Department briefing on Friday were curious about the effects that such principles might have on Americans at home. “What about any Americans in this country that provide programming or things like that? Are — ,” begins a follow-up question. The spokesperson interrupted, insisting that, for the time being, we should remain focused on foreigners, not legal principles. It would have been interesting to hear the complete question in order to determine if the reporter was asking about Americans who provide pro-Arab programming such as provided by Al-Manar or anti-Arab programming such as provided by Fox, Viacom, or MSNBC. “I don’t know what the legal implications might be,” said the spokesperson who had earlier begged journalists to bear with him while he looked up the exact State Department language concerning the Al-Manar decision: “Let me look it up because it is a legal matter and I want to get it right.” “I think this list, in particular, only has to do with the exclusion of aliens from the United States,” said the spokesperon. “So whether there are other designations that might imply something for Americans, I don’t know. I’m not aware of any restrictions at this point on finance or things like that.” As news reports have pointed out, “the US Treasury could further decide to include Al-Manar on its terrorism blacklist, freezing its assets and making any financial dealings with the channel illegal.” What about Americans who help to distribute Al-Manar in the USA? “I’ve given you the criteria,” said the spokesperson. “We will be examining people and activities to see whether they fall within that criteria.” Does the move by the State Department reflect undue influence by Israeli lobbyists? The spokesperson denied the allegation by spinning Hezbollah’s terror as an interference in Palestinian affairs. Palestinians, said the spokesperson, were trying to win peace by peaceful means. “It’s not a question of freedom of speech. It’s a question of incitement to violence, and we don’t see why, here or anywhere else, a terrorist organization should be allowed to spread its hatred and incitement through the television airwaves.” International legal scholar Francis Boyle says Arab advocates should sue Fox News for “inciting terroism.” Via email, Boyle says he just gave an interview to that effect while visiting Dubai. In Beirut, meanwhile, Al-Jazeera reports that 50 cable operators have cut signals from French TV5 in retaliation for France’s decision last week to suspend Al-Manar’s signal. “Al-Manar was dropped from French-based Eutelsat’s broadcasts on Tuesday after a Paris court found it guilty of being anti-Jewish,” a reports Al-Jazeera. “On Friday, French-owned satellite carrier GlobeCast removed al-Manar from US airwaves after the state department announced it had added the channel to its list of suspected terrorist organisations that face sanctions.” An analysis of the French initiative by New York Sun staff writer Eli Lake gives credit to former Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky for leading the campaign against Al-Manar. In America, too, says the report, Sharansky showed videotapes of Al-Manar clips to members of Congress. Meanwhile, one of the satellite companies, Intelsat, that quickly pulled the plug on Al-Manar’s signal, is undergoing a stormy year of privatization. An “Initial Public Offering has been delayed several times. In October, the company announced that it would sell itself to a coalition of venture capitalists operating out of Bermuda under the name “Zeus“. According to a release posted at Intelsat’s website, Zeus is a mosaic of other captial venture firms such as Apax Partners Worldwide, LLP and Apax Partners, Inc., Apollo Management V, L.P., MDP Global Investors Limited and Permira Advisers LLC. Directors from Apax and Permira (Richard Wilson and Graham Wrigley) joined the board at satellite company Inmarsat in December 2003. According to FCC documents, one Inmarsat rival accuses the company of engaging in anticompetitive practices. Inmarsat unfairly uses “proprietary protocols and technology” says rival MSV (Mobile Satellite Ventures–owners of MSAT satellites 1 & 2). At the Apollo group, one of the founding principals, Marc J. Rowan, has been known to exhibit an appetite for XM Satellite Radio stock. As these satellite giants are targets for capital ventures seeking communication dominance, the unplugging of Al-Manar by Intelsat raises questions about rights to free speech in a privatized communication infrastructure. An August report by the European Institute for the Media reports on page 211 that, “In order for the media to carry out its function as the fourth estate, and in order for the citizen to be fully informed regarding the democratic process, a ëfreedom of information’ system is also required in a democratic system.” “The ‘war on terrorism’, the fight against crime and the fight against right wing extremism can pose problems for the practice of investigative journalism,” says the report. Under the cover of anti-terrorism, the state is exercising new forms of surveillance and control over journalists (p. 214). As a handful of conservative, Texas, Islamic activists suggest, the listing of Al-Manar by the State Department and the rapid disconnection by satellite giant Intelsat indeed poses deep questions about the structure of information freedom at the advent of a second Bush administration. GREG MOSES is editor of the Texas Civil Rights Review and author of Revolution of Conscience: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Philosophy of Nonviolence. His chapter on civil rights under Clinton and Bush appears in Dime’s Worth of Difference, edited by Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair. He can be reached at: [email protected] (1) A concise version of this story is posted at a http://www.alternet.org/rights/20796/”Alternet. (2) Also see statement by a Reporters Without Borders. Join the debate on Facebook Greg Moses writes about peace and Texas, but not always at the same time. He is author of Revolution of Conscience: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Philosophy of Nonviolence. As editor of the Texas Civil Rights Review he has written about racism faced by Black agriculturalists in Texas. He can be reached at [email protected] More articles by:Greg Moses next - The Case for Boycotting Israel, previous - My Case Against Pinochet,

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10 things you might not know about Chicago protests Mark Jacob and Stephan Benzkofer Occupy Chicago protesters are writing another chapter in a long history of dissent in this city. Here are 10 demonstrated facts:1 Chicago has never landed an Olympics, but in 1932 it hosted a "counter-Olympics." The event was organized by American communists as a protest against racism and nationalism, which they found on display at that year's real Olympics in Los Angeles. The alternative event, held at the University of Chicago and officially called the International Workers Athletic Meet, featured competitors wearing signs such as "Free Tom Mooney," in support of a labor activist convicted in a fatal bombing. 2 When the Chicago Board Options Exchange instituted a dress code in 1977 that banned blue jeans, T-shirts and halter tops, some traders protested by wearing tuxedos. CBOE officials decided not to levy fines for the stunt, but some colleagues grumbled about the traders' "childish behavior."3 In August 1966, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led about 350 protesters on a march through the Southwest Side to advocate for open housing. They were met by a mob of more than 4,000 who threw rocks, bottles, firecrackers and curses. King himself was knocked to the ground when a rock hit him in the back of the head. "I have seen many demonstrations in the South, but I have never seen anything so hostile and so hateful as I've seen here today." (This national news story somehow didn't lead the next day's Tribune. The paper's editors opted for the College All-Star Game at Soldier Field.) 4 Remember the famous clashes between police and demonstrators at the 1968 Democratic National Convention? Didn't happen. At least they didn't happen anywhere near the convention. The Democrats met at the old International Amphitheatre at 42nd and Halsted while the major confrontations were around Grant Park (about four miles away) and Lincoln Park (more than seven miles away).5 Chicago officials, who were determined that the 1996 Democratic Convention not be a repeat of 1968, set up "designated protest areas" and required activists to participate in a lottery for protest times. The Lesbian Avengers of Chicago were turned down when they sought permission to eat fire as part of their protest. City officials deemed it unsafe.6 When Southwest Side residents protested in 1910 about the vile condition of Bubbly Creek and other nearby garbage dumps and demanded the city clean it up, the health commissioner blamed them for living in such conditions. And while he conceded the local dumps were a problem, he insisted: "A typhoid germ could not live in Bubbly Creek. That unspeakable filth would strangle a typhoid germ."7 For most of the last century, one group of people could be counted on to attend many Chicago protests: police spies. By one count in 1960, the Chicago Police Department's Red Squad had gathered information on about 117,000 Chicagoans and 141,000 people from out of town. Its illegal surveillance of dissidents was put to an end by a court ruling in 1985.8 The aggrieved class of citizens known as North Shore teenagers staged a protest in July 1988 at the Lake Forest Mini-Mart, complaining that they were not permitted to hang out there or use the bathroom. One sign read: "Open the laboratory."9 Chicago fluoridated its water in 1956. A small but voluble group of protesters argued it was mass medication and illegal. They picketed City Hall with signs that asked: "Is Mayor Daley our Pied Piper?" and "Why drink rat poison?"10 When Elvis Presley was inducted into the Army in 1958, schoolgirls wore dog tags bearing Elvis's name, serial number and blood type. But Jones Commercial High School in downtown Chicago banned the practice, setting off a protest by schoolgirls, who held a large banner declaring that the school was "Unfair to Elvis Presley."[email protected]@tribune.comMark Jacob is a deputy metro editor for the Tribune; Stephan Benzkofer is the Tribune's weekend editor.Sources: "Red Chicago: American Communism at Its Grassroots, 1928-35" by Randi Storch; "A People's History of Sports in the United States" by Dave Zirin; Encyclopedia of Chicago; Tribune archives.

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Airstrikes in Somalia Show UN Is In for Long Haul US-led raids deal a `significant military setback' to warlord Aideed By Peter Grier, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor — WAVES of United States-led attacks on the Somali warlord seen as responsible for the killing of Pakistani peacekeepers emphasize that, for the world community, getting out of Somalia is going to be much harder than going in.Some six months after US troops first landed on Mogadishu beaches in a blaze of television lights, Somalia is still far from a politically stable country. It has no functioning government, no national security forces, and is still unable to feed many of its people without outside aid. (Somalis call for follow-up, Page 14)At the same time, the large-scale presence of United Nations forces seems to be a symbol of quasi-occupation to restive elements of the Somali population. In what appeared to be well-coordinated attacks on Pakistani patrols last week, Gen. Mohamed Farah Aideed seemed to be trying to test the UN's mettle. General Aideed perhaps thought he could expand the limits of his own power, since heavily armed US troops had mostly left. Instead, he provided the occasion for the Clinton administration's first use of US military power. American gunships lriddled Aideed's weapons storage areas and appear to have destroyed much of his firepower. "This by any measure is a very significant military setback for Aideed," said the senior Pentagon official at a briefing for reporters held over the weekend.The message is that despite the welcome-home ceremony for the military already held by President Clinton, US forces are still committed to Somalia for the long haul. The end of that road remains unclear, especially since Somalia remains awash in weapons despite those hit by US Spectre aircraft."This is just one event in this peace stability process," said the senior Pentagon official. "The intent is to allow the food deliveries to continue, to allow Somalia as a nation to kind of come together."Earlier this spring Somali factions did tentatively agree to establish a Transitional National Council to run the country pending establishment of a permanent government. But details of council membership and representation remain vague - as does the timetable for its implementation.Meanwhile the UN peacekeeping force has found it difficult to follow in the footsteps of the heavily armed and well-trained 30,000 US troops that brought calm to many areas over the winter. Only about 3,000 US troops remain, including a quick reaction force designed to provide some teeth for the UN.The tragic ambush in which 23 Pakistanis were killed demonstrates the vulnerability of lightly armed patrols in the unstable Somali situation. But the reaction of Pakistani troops appears to have had equally tragic consequences. They opened fire on a crowd of demonstrators in Mogadishu on June 13, killing at least nine, including a child.Outside of areas where the UN has established regular patrols and military control, there is now no more order in the country than before US troops first arrived, according to a British journalist writing in the current issue of Foreign Policy magazine.The disarming of Somalis has to this point been selective, and aid workers remain easy targets for bandits. "Somali's troubles are far from over," gloomily writes the Nairobi-based Jonathan Stevenson.As of this writing, US-led attacks against Aideed had destroyed a radio station under his control that had continually denounced the UN, a cigarette factory used as a troops and weapons assembly area, and several weapons depots where his "technicals" - trucks with machine guns - and other heavy gear had been stored, per agreement with the UN.Under the deals struck earlier, the US and the UN had agreed not to confiscate the warlord's weapons under condition that they not be used. Similar arrangements have been made with other Somali warlords.The attack against the Pakistanis last week came as they were in the process of proceeding to take inventory at Aideed's agreed-upon weapons depots. According to the Pentagon, this count found significant numbers of weapons missing, including 20 technicals. Presumably they had been surreptitiously withdrawn for use against UN troops.The AC-130 gunships flown from the US to retaliate are one of the US military's weapons of choice for sustained fire against ground targets that are largely devoid of anti-aircraft protection. They carry a 105mm howitzer with 100 rounds - an airborne tank gun, in essence - as well as 4,000 rounds of 40mm and 20,000 rounds of 20mm ammunition. The Pentagon says it took pains to try and limit collateral damage by the gunships. Ukraine airstrikes, helicopter attacks kill 30 insurgents A global model for peacebuilding – in Somalia? Al Shabab leader surrenders in Somalia (+video)

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The Socialite Who Killed A Nazi with Her Bare Hands and 143 Other Fascinating People Who Died This Past Year: The Best of the New York Times Obituaries William McDonald, ed. Tom Rachman, foreword. A Pulitzer Prize�winning journalist as well as the obituaries editor at the Times since 2006, William McDonald knows a good story when he hears it, especially if it already has an ending. Here he collects the obituaries of 144 people who died in the 12 months ending July 31, 2012�a widely varied roster whose one common virtue is that their life stories are fascinating. Apple cofounder Steve Jobs was reunited in his 30s with a sister he never knew; poet Ruth Stone was virtually anonymous until, at 87, she won the National Book Award; Arch West invented the Dorito and a new snack industry; and New Zealand socialite Nancy Wake joined the French Resistance in World War II and was awarded the Legion of Honor.

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Colorado Department of Corrections chief shot to death answering door MONUMENT, Colo. - The head of the Colorado Department of Corrections was shot and killed when he answered the front door of his home, and police were searching for the gunman Wednesday. Tom Clements was shot at around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday night at his home in Monument, north of Colorado Springs, said Sheriff's Lt. Jeff Kramer. A family member called 911 to report the shooting and officers found 58-year-old Clements dead in his home, he said. Search dogs have been called in to comb through a wooded area around Clements' home, and authorities were going house to house trying to find out what neighbors heard. Gov. John Hickenlooper appointed Clements to the post in 2011 after he served for more than three decades in the Missouri Department of Corrections. He replaced Ari Zavaras, a former Denver police chief who led the department under two governors. The department operates 20 adult prisons and a juvenile detainment system. In a statement released early Wednesday and sent to department employees, Hickenlooper said he was in disbelief over the killing. "As your executive director, he helped change and improve (the department) in two years more than most people could do in eight years. He was unfailingly kind and thoughtful, and sought the 'good' in any situation. I am so sad. I have never worked with a better person than Tom, and I can't imagine our team without him," Hickenlooper said. The governor said he is awaiting further details. Clements is survived by his wife, Lisa, their two daughters and their family. Hickenlooper asked the public to respect their privacy.

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Print Email Font ResizeLongmont city officials: Mall owner and Dillard's still talkingMarch 1 is the deadline for an agreementBy Scott Rochat Longmont Times-CallPosted: 03/01/2013 03:11:08 PM MSTThis artist's rendering shows what NewMark Merrill Mountain States is planning for the 75-acre Twin Peaks Mall property. The northern end of the property features a large, yet-unnamed anchor, while the Dillards can be seen in the center-left of the site. A newly constructed movie theater is on the east end. (Courtesy NewMark Merrill Mountain States) LONGMONT -- March 1 had been the deadline for Dillard's and the owners of Twin Peaks Mall to strike a deal on the mall's development. The day may end without one, but Longmont officials say the talks are still moving forward and that the city doesn't want to cut off the discussion. "You don't want to arbitrarily say 'Here it is' when both parties are still communicating," city manager Harold Dominguez said. "They're still talking. There's not a point where they're so far apart that the discussions have ended." The Longmont City Council will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in a closed-door executive session to be updated by city officials on the latest negotiations with both Dillard's and the Regal Entertainment Group, owner of United Artists Theatre. The meeting will be in the study session room of the civic center, 350 Kimbark St. The mall's owner, NewMark Merrill Mountain States, has said it needs agreements by April 1 with both Dillard's and with Regal, or else the mall's redevelopment could be pushed back a year. Unlike the rest of the mall's businesses, Dillard's owns its own building and land, while Regal's lease gives it the exclusive right to operate a theater on the site. A timeline presented to the city council in February set a March 1 date for Dillard's and NewMark Merrill to reach an agreement. The Regal lease was to be finalized by March 15. "We do feel good about the negotiations and where we're at," external assistant city manager Shawn Lewis said, referring to both tenants. On March 19, Twin Peaks will be back at the center of the City Council's agenda. If agreements have not been reached by then, the council will have to decide what to do next -- including whether to reach for the last-resort hammer of eminent domain. Right now, Dominguez said, the city's not going to make any rash moves. "There are no imminent decisions," he said. "The parties are talking and they're communicating with us." Nathan Emmons, of Thunderpup Construction, Fort Collins, walks through the empty food court area inside Twin Peaks Mall on Feb. 01. (Lewis Geyer/Times-Call) Allen Ginsborg, the managing director of NMMS, said talks with Dillard's had been cordial with "a lot of back and forth, but that's how negotiations go, don't they?" Dillard's declined to comment on the talks while they were still in progress. If the agreements go forward, NewMark Merrill plans to demolish the entire mall except for Dillard's, which will be a stand-alone building on the 75 acre property. The new open-air mall would include the movie theater, smaller mini-anchors near and to the south of Dillard's and a plaza on the center-west section of the site surrounded by smaller shops and restaurants The city is contributing $27.5 million of the estimated $80 million redevelopment project; the city's bonds will be repaid by the additional sales and property tax the mall generates and by a mill levy the mall will place on itself. An agreement between Longmont and NewMark Merrill sets several benchmarks before any city money is released; under that agreement, the project must be at least 85 percent finished by the end of 2015. Scott Rochat can be reached at 303-684-5220 or [email protected]. Times-Call reporter Tony Kindelspire contributed to this storyPrint Email Font ResizeReturn to Top RELATED

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Consumer data bills facebusiness opposition By By Fenit NirappilThe Associated Press SACRAMENTO >> California lawmakers are trying to strengthen consumer data protections as businesses profit from the trove of details they collect and criminals become ever more sophisticated in trying to steal it. Bills introduced this session seek to guard the information generated when Californians swipe credit cards at stores, drive vehicles and attend schools. The most notable initiatives have been gutted and defeated in the face of fierce opposition from powerful business groups. "We are winning small, bite-size kinds of fights," said Richard Holober, executive director of the Consumer Federation of California. "But when it's about the core profit motive of high tech companies, wins will only really occur when there's a voter revolt." The sometimes nebulous world of consumer data hit home last holiday season for tens of millions of Target and Neiman Marcus customers whose phone numbers, addresses and credit card numbers were breached. That sent customers scrambling to reset credit cards and automatic payments and to monitor their credit scores. "Everybody wants to go to the store and buy things instantaneously, so you don't want to crush that advancement in tech," said Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski, D-Fremont, who held a hearing in February on how to respond to data breaches. "On the other hand, we've got to take a step back from this wild, wild West." Wieckowski and Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento, introduced AB1710 in response to the data breaches. It would have set new standards and restrictions on retailers that keep customer data and held those who do not comply liable for the costs of a breach. But those provisions have been gutted after business groups warned against enshrining constantly evolving technology standards into law. "Data breaches are now a fact of life, and retailers are not the only one facing them," said Bill Dombrowski, executive director of the California Retailers Association. The state attorney general's office reports that 300 separate data breaches during the past two years exposed the personal information for more than 20 million Californians. More than 7 million Californians were affected by the Target breach alone. The bill, which is headed for a floor vote, still requires retailers, in addition to financial institutions, to notify customers of a breach and provide credit monitoring services. "Just because you can't solve an entire problem doesn't mean you can't solve part of it," Dickinson said. Bills have until the end of May to pass between the Assembly and Senate. In the Senate, SB994 by Sen. Bill Monning, D-Carmel, tried and failed to pre-emptively deal with vehicles that collect data recording drivers' routes, speeds and habits. His office said about one in five vehicles has such technology and that it is on track to become universal within a decade. His bill would have required manufacturers to disclose to customers what data the vehicles collect and choose who gets access to it, such as repair shops. Vehicle manufacturers launched an aggressive campaign against the bill, arguing the automobile clubs sponsoring it had an ulterior motive to use the data to help affiliated repair shops and insurers. The bill died in committee when seven lawmakers of both parties abstained from voting. "The question and balancing act is, 'Are people voting in the best interest of constituents or in reaction to the massive power of industry?'" Monning said in response to the bill's defeat. But his legislation also did not have the backing of consumer advocacy groups that want greater privacy protections. Rob Stutzman, who represented the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers in the fight against the bill, said the Target and Neiman Marcus data breaches resonated with lawmakers about why they should oppose the bill. "What people really want is data security," he said. "If you allow any third party to basically be able to receive a car's data, you have a potential for a huge compromise."

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Obituaries → Nintendo’s Hiroshi Yamauchi, who bought Seattle Mariners, dies at 85 In this Friday, June 12, 1992 photo, Hiroshi Yamauchi, then-president of Japan's Nintendo Co., answers questions during a news conference after he won the final approval to buy the Seattle Mariners at the company's head office in Kyoto, western Japan. (Katsumi Kasahara, AP Photo/File) By Yuri Kageyama, Associated Press TOKYO — Hiroshi Yamauchi, who ran Nintendo for more than 50 years and led the Japanese company’s transition from traditional playing-card maker to video game giant, has died. He was 85.Kyoto-based Nintendo said Yamauchi, who owned the Seattle Mariners major league baseball club before selling it to Nintendo’s U.S. unit in 2004, died Thursday of pneumonia at a hospital in central Japan.Yamauchi, who had little interest in baseball, was approached to buy the Mariners, who may have had to move to Florida without a new backer. The acquisition made the Seattle club the first in the major leagues to have foreign ownership. Yamauchi was company president from 1949 to 2002, and engineered Nintendo’s global growth, including developing the early Family Computer consoles and Game Boy portables.Nintendo, which makes Super Mario and Pokemon games as well as the Wii U home console, was founded in 1889. It made traditional playing cards before venturing into video games.Reputed as a visionary and among the richest men in Japan, Yamauchi made key moves such as employing the talents of Shigeru Miyamoto, a global star of game design and the brainchild of Nintendo hits such as Super Mario and Donkey Kong. A dropout of the prestigious Waseda University in Tokyo, Yamauchi’s raspy voice and tendency to speak informally in his native Kyoto dialect was a kind of disarming spontaneity rare among Japanese executives.After being succeeded by President Satoru Iwata at the helm of Nintendo, Yamauchi stayed on as adviser, but his role increasingly diminished with the years.The company has floundered in the past couple of years, hurt by a strong yen and competition from games on smartphones and tablets.Yamauchi is survived by Katsuhito Yamauchi, his eldest son. A funeral is scheduled for Sunday at Nintendo, following a wake on Saturday. ___Follow Yuri Kageyama on Twitter at www.twitter.com/yurikageyama

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Primate's week-long vigil for peace / Mark Foster THE region’s most senior churchman has begun a week-long vigil praying for peace in the war-torn Middle East. The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, is leading a vigil at York Minster where he will try and persuade people violence is not the answer. He began his week-long fast and vigil, entitled Hope and Trust for the Peace of the World, in the St John’s Chapel, on Sunday at 6am, and is praying every hour from 6am to 6pm. “People always say ‘does prayer change things?’ Well, I’m a father of hope,” he said. “I’m hoping between now and the end of the seven days the world will recognise a bit of common sense.” “The Middle East is going through something terrible where the neighbours are killing neighbours and the viciousness of the weapons being used are horrible. “I genuinely feel I had to do something to say armaments and militarisation don’t bring peace in the world.” Dr Sentamu has taken a selection of items with him on his vigil, including a candle to represent the victims of violence, a globe and a plate from Egypt which is adorned with the Lord’s Prayer and was donated by visiting Bishop Mouneer Anis to recognise conflicts in his country.

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Hoyer Statement on the Beginning of Marriage Equality Oral Arguments to the Supreme Court Share this: Twitter Facebook Email Print For Immediate Release:March 26, 2013Contact:Stephanie Young, 202-225-3130WASHINGTON, DC - House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today as the Supreme Court began to hear oral arguments on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and Hollingsworth v. Perry, a challenge to California's Prop. 8 this week:“As the Supreme Court hears challenges to the constitutionality of California’s Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act this week, we must remember that our nation was founded on the principle that all people are not only created equal but deserve to be treated equally under the law. Discrimination of any kind has no place in our nation. “I was proud to join with 212 other House and Senate Democrats in filing an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to uphold the Second Circuit’s ruling in U.S. v. Edith Schlain Windsor that DOMA is unconstitutional. The House Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group, which is defending the discriminatory DOMA on the orders of the House Republican leadership, does not speak for Congress as a whole. “While the Court considers these cases, I will continue to advocate for full equality for LGBT individuals and families in Maryland and across the country.”### Email Updates

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June 09, 2014 01:52 PM CDT Water Woes: Rancher fights on Water Woes: Rancher fights on Comments () Gregory R.C. Hasman/For the DRC Mesquite trees, which proliferate Texas ranches particularly during droughts, are difficult to eradicate. By Gregory R.C. Hasman / For the Denton Record-Chronicle Gregory R.C. Hasman / For the Denton Record-Chronicle Published: 07 May 2014 11:10 PM Water Woes: Drawn away Water Woes: A grave need Water Woes: Lush lawns take toll Water Woes: Trickle-down effect Growth, drought raising concerns Digging deep Water Woes: Running on empty Water Woes: High and dry Water Woes: Back to the land EDITOR’S NOTE: The Denton Record-Chronicle staff and graduate students from the University of North Texas School of Journalism under the direction of professor George Getschow worked more than a year interviewing people across Texas and researching the issue of how people are using water, the state of this necessary resource and how some are searching for solutions. The series launches an ongoing effort to keep readers informed about how the drought is affecting daily lives across the state and how some are seeking alternative measures to solve a growing issue as the drought continues and the state attracts more residents. Look for the “Water Woes” logo throughout the next week and coming weeks and months. And, if you have any suggestions, ideas or stories of your own to share, please visit our special projects page on Facebook or send an email to [email protected].— Dawn Cobb, managing editor BORDEN COUNTY — A crisp breeze rips across the prairie as Ralph Miller steps from his dirt-encrusted Ford F-250. He adjusts a sweep of gray hair under his black Stetson and stands over a grave marked “The Water Well Man.”Miller’s good friend and ranch hand, Randell Laurence, is buried here under the Bar V’s most sacred ground. Laurence played a key role in keeping the cattle, the grass and the rest of the ranch going for decades. But on a fall day in 1997, tragedy struck.As Laurence lowered his water drill into the ground, the machinery sucked him in with it. A young boy who was helping him backed off in fear, and as the derrick was raised, the rig hit a power line and electrocuted Laurence. He was 62.Miller, the owner of the 32,000-acre Bar V Ranch in drought-stricken West Texas, was so grateful to Laurence for devoting his life to digging, repairing and servicing the ranch’s water wells that he made sure Laurence rested in peace inside the family cemetery, a grassy knoll surrounded by pecan trees and a creek nearby that murmured with the melody of flowing water.Standing inside the cemetery, Miller gazes over the gravestones of “The Water Well Man,” his father, “Mr. Clyde,” his mother, Bessie, their cook and their faithful cowboy, contemplating the future of the ranch. All of the men and women buried here lived and died fighting to keep the Bar V alive through the now legendary droughts of the 1930s, ’50s and ’70s.Now, a brutal and relentless drought that’s ruined ranches and farms throughout Texas and the Southwest over the last decade seems hell-bent on sending the 114-year-old ranch to its grave.Some drought-weary ranchers in West Texas, the hardest-hit region in the state, have given up hope that the drought will ever end. And there’s no shortage of drought experts who agree with them.“It may take a hurricane to end this,” says Raymond Slade, a former hydrologist for the U.S. Geological Survey who now is an adjunct professor at Austin Community College.Consequently, some West Texas ranchers are liquidating their herds and selling their land to anyone willing to make an offer. But Miller says he’ll never sell the ranch. To him, the Bar V is not just a ranch, it’s a family heirloom.Miller’s pride in the Bar V and his ranching heritage is embodied in a plaque mounted on the west gate of the ranch. The plaque, awarded by the state of Texas to Miller in 2000, designates the Bar V a “century ranch,” meaning it’s been operated continually by the same family for 100 years.And the family has taken steps to make sure it stays that way. Miller’s brother, Riley, owns and operates half of the original homestead and Ralph Miller has partitioned some sections of the ranch to his daughters, Tammy and Rebecca.The Bar V’s history is deeply intertwined with Texas’s storied history. Quanah Parker and his tribe of Comanche Indians established a large village alongside Gavett Creek, hunting vast herds of bison and deer. Cattle drives and wagon trains heading west stopped here to water their cattle herds and horses.And many of Ralph Miller’s ancestors and ranch hands buried in the family cemetery gave their lives to the Bar V. The ranch is hallowed ground, says Miller, and the idea of abandoning it is unimaginable.“You have to stay and keep a-fightin’,” says the 82-year-old rancher. “This is my life. I’m a rancher. That’s all there is to it.”Miller is no Pollyanna. But having lived through some of the worst droughts in Texas history, he considers himself a survivor.During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, for example, when little rain, high winds and heavy tilling of the topsoil formed black blizzards across the great southern plains, tens of thousands of farms, ranches and banks went under. With no money, no water and no grass to feed their cattle, the federal government ordered the mass slaughter of cattle herds in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.“They shot 400 on our land,” recalls Miller. “My dad had to round up cattle and a man hired by the government shot them and rolled them off the caprock (a rocky ledge at one corner of the ranch) where they rotted for five or six years. Their bones were eventually ground up for their calcium and phosphorus, which were used (as a feed supplement) for livestock. The bones brought in more money than a living calf.”As a 3-year-old, watching his dad’s steers and calves shot in the head and shoved off the edge of their ranch nearly sent him off the caprock.“We had a calf feeding on a bottle and his mother had died,” Miller says. “A man said we had to kill the calf. So he did. Blood came out of its mouth and she ran around bleeding.” That scene, stuck in his memory, still deeply pains him today.During the 1950s, a time Texas ranchers refer to as “The Great Dry Up,” severe drought devastated the region’s ranches. Soaring temperatures and low rainfall scorched the Bar V’s grasslands.With grass scarce, hay prices skyrocketed, forcing the Millers and some other ranchers in the region to feed their cattle a mixture of prickly pear cactus and molasses. By the time the drought subsided in 1957, many counties across Texas, including Borden County, home of the Bar V, were declared federal drought disaster areas.But to Miller, the Great Dry Up seems almost picayune compared to the pernicious, present-day drought that has been sucking the life out of the Bar V and surrounding ranches in Borden County since 1983.“We’ve run out of water and grass,” he says.Miller steps out of the family cemetery and walks a few feet to a gaping, 100-foot-wide, 25-foot-deep hole in the hard ground.It’s one of 200 “cattle tanks” dug with bulldozers during the Great Dry Up to hold as much as 1,000-acre feet of water, enough water to fill up 500 Olympic-size swimming pools. As a boy, Miller couldn’t wait after completing his chores to dive into the tank.“It was like a giant swimming pool,” he says.But the water tank on the outskirts of the family cemetery, like all the other tanks on the Bar V, has little water in it these days. There simply hasn’t been enough rainfall, and the Mesquite Creek that once fed the tank has since dried up. Now this tank and all the others contain a murky mixture of mud, silt, manure and dead flies.Sometimes Miller’s steers wander into one of the tanks only to get swallowed up in the mud. When he sees one of his steers, stuck up to their necks, scratching and fighting for its life, Miller will quickly dispatch a Caterpillar loader with rubber tires to haul the distressed steer out of the tank.Two years ago, with his creeks dry, all of his water tanks evaporating by the minute and his “drought-resistant” buffalo grass turning brown, Miller had to make a hard choice.He had done everything he could — including digging 100 water wells under his ranch in search of water. But all of them were dry holes — except for one that hardly produced enough water to fill a bird bath. In desperation, Miller sold his entire herd — nearly 2,000 head in all. It was the first time in 111 years that the Bar V had no cattle grazing anywhere on the ranch.For Miller, it was one of the most distressing days of his life. Having survived the monstrous droughts of the ’30s and ’50s, Miller never thought he’d face the day when the Bar V would have to liquidate an entire herd. But the Texas inferno had baked the Bar V into scorched earth, he says, leaving him no choice.His only consolation was that he wasn’t alone. Day and night, every rural back road in Borden County was jammed with cattle trailers hauling their bawling steers off to area auction barns and selling them at prices that didn’t begin to cover the costs of raising them.But while some of the ranchers in Borden County and the surrounding region liquidated their herds and said goodbye to ranching altogether, Miller told himself he’d stick it out, somehow, until the drought subsided.For the last two years, he’s been slowly rebuilding his herd, planting Sudan and other hybrid grasses considered more drought resistant than native buffalo grass and signed up with an Israeli company that, he says, plans to build a giant water purification plant on the ranch that will be able to process abundant quantities of brackish water flowing deep under the Bar V into “fresh water.”The rancher hopes that the Israeli company can turn back the clock to the time when his grandfather moved to the area in 1900. He crossed Little Bull Creek a few miles southwest of Miller’s current home, complaining to his wife and other family members “that the only drawback of Borden County is that there was too much water,” Miller recalls. “Too much water!”Even during the Great Dry Up, Miller recalls that after he and his wife got married in 1951, there was a big lake below the house they built that they used for drinking water.“Everyone said, ‘You got the best water I’ve ever tasted,’” he says.But starting in 1983, the big lake that supplied Miller’s drinking water dried up. Miller blames an invasion of mesquite trees that spread across the Bar V like a plague, aided by the drought.Mesquite sprouts during prolonged drought because the seeds don’t wash away. Today, Miller says he’s got “hundreds of thousands” of mesquite trees that have taken over his ranch, burrowing their roots 30 to 40 feet into the ground. Each tree, he says, will vacuum up to 20 gallons of water a day.“They consumed our water and the springs quit running,” Miller says, as if he’s referring to an enemy combatant.The family has tried to destroy the enemy with chemicals or by uprooting them with giant machines called grubbers. But none of these efforts has met with much success.“They are tougher than we are,” Miller says.The drought also proved tougher than the Bar V’s daring effort to grow hay on dry land last year. But with his grass wilting and the cost of imported hay skyrocketing, Miller felt it was worth a try. So he plowed under about 3,200 acres of his prairie and planted hay seed. But without sufficient rainfall, it never even sprouted.With little rainfall and the price of hay skyrocketing, the state’s cattle inventory has fallen to 4 million, the lowest level since 1959. As a result, cattle prices have risen 20 percent in the last few years, making Miller’s quest to restock the Bar V Ranch seem quixotic.In Borden County and throughout Texas, many ranchers aren’t restocking their herds because they can’t afford to.“Ranchers throughout Texas have thinned their herds because they cannot provide enough ambient grazing and cannot afford to import hay,” says Alyssa Burgin, director of the Texas Drought Project, which brings together ranchers, hydrologists and climatologists to study the drought’s impact on Texas and suggest ways to cope with it.Just a few months ago, in fact, Miller, his son-in-law, two of his grandsons and a few cowboys in Wrangler shirts and leather chaps found themselves rounding up a herd of steers and calves they had just bought the year before.A siren wails, calling a curious herd of Black Angus and Herefords toward Miller’s truck.Using his truck to guide them, Miller and his crew circle the herd and slowly guide them into a 150-foot holding pen where a special ranger from the Texas Southwest Cattle Association is standing by to inspect them.The calves are separated from the Herefords and Black Angus steers and coaxed into a separate pen. The calves that Miller plans to sell that day are weighed and loaded onto a gigantic trailer.As the grandsons and cowboys wave goodbye to the 142 calves getting shipped off — about a quarter of the Bar V’s herd — Miller drives away slowly, and starts spreading “cake” — cubes of barley and other grains that, Miller hopes, will make up for the nutrients his cattle aren’t getting in their drought-ravaged grass.Leaving his herd and his grandsons behind, Miller heads north on a gravel road, passing by his house, patches of buffalo grass and a few pump jacks cranking and grinding from old age.The old rancher gazes at the endless expanse of his parched land and turns nostalgic. For eight decades now, the Bar V has been his life, his love, his obsession. Having withstood the fury of the most ferocious droughts in Texas history, Miller says his greatest hope is that “my kids will hold onto it.”Miller stops by the family cemetery once again to pay his respects to his father and mother, “The Water Well Man” and the other ranch hands who battled to keep the Bar V going for the last 114 years. He hopes his children and grandchildren embrace the hard lessons he learned from giving his life to the Bar V.“If you turn around and say you got it made and sit down, you’ll lose everything you got,” he says. “If you ever decide that you did all you can do, you’ll lose everything you got.”Simply surviving — not now, not ever — is never a sure thing on the Bar V.

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Current Issue: September 2014 Print - This Page | Entire Issue Directors Zone Issue Date: 09/2012 Hello everyone and welcome back from summer. I hope you are well rested from your vacations and ready to tackle the challenges and rewards of the next quarter. We have a couple of exciting things coming up in late September and early October. As most everyone knows by now (I hope), the second full freeway closure of I-405 through the Sepulveda Pass will be taking place the weekend of September 29/30. Last year’s closure, the dreaded “Carmageddon,” turned out to be one of the best traffic experiences in Los Angeles history. People heeded the warnings and stayed out of their cars, resulting in a 67 percent decrease in traffic system-wide. This year, we know that everyone will be less fearful, so we are counting on their good sense and a major public outreach campaign urging everyone to “eat, shop and play locally.” Metro, our partner on the I-405 HOV lane project requiring this closure, has launched a discount program that is tied to the use of public transit. We are hoping for another successful closure en route to creating an unbroken HOV lane in both directions of I-405 from the San Fernando Valley to Orange County. With HOV lane construction underway and planned for almost every route in the district, Caltrans is well on its way to providing ridesharing alternatives throughout the entire system. Also coming soon is the space shuttle Endeavour. Los Angeles is fortunate to become the new home of the retired orbiter and Caltrans is happy to play a part in its transport from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to the California Science Center, where it will become a permanent display. The shuttle is expected to arrive at LAX on September 20, weather permitting. It will leave the airport on the morning of October 12, crossing Lincoln Boulevard and I-405 on its journey. We are facilitating the Lincoln Boulevard segment by allowing modification of medians to accommodate the shuttle, which is five stories tall, has a wingspan of 78 feet and weighs 170,000 pounds. It will arrive at Inglewood City Hall on October 13 for an official launch before being transported to the Science Center. Here in Executive Management, we are undergoing a bit of a shakeup. We have a new Deputy of Planning, Aziz Elattar. Construction Deputy Roy Fisher has left Caltrans for a job in the private sector. Temporarily replacing him is Maintenance Deputy Dan Freeman, whose position will be temporarily filled by Herby Lissade, currently the HQ Chief of the Caltrans Office of Emergency Management. We also are losing Operations Deputy Diana Gomez to an exciting position as Central Valley Regional Director of the High Speed Rail Authority. Dan Fogle, Chief of the HQ Office of Encroachment Permits and Outdoor Advertising, will become District 7’s Acting Operations Deputy. We welcome everyone to their new positions and wish our former staff all the best. In other Department news, the district directors and executive management in Sacramento have been working on a program review process to set and determine priorities, developing strategic roles for Caltrans in the coming years. These meetings will continue for the next few months and we will announce the plan when it is finalized. Finally, I want to remind everyone to participate in the Annual California State Employees Charitable Campaign (CSECC), which kicks off on October 2. Last year, Caltrans employees statewide donated $669,641 through the CSECC. Let’s try to top that this year. Although it continues to be tough times for everyone, some folks have it tougher than we do, so let’s try to help them out. You can find out more about the campaign is this issue. And be safe out there. Watch the road, move over for highway workers and be aware of your surroundings at all times. Inside Seven - District 7 Employee Newsletter - Contact Editor | Contact Webmaster

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Home Page »News »Local News » Village plan moves ahead Village plan moves ahead Swap preferred option in Wolf Creek study The U.S. Forest Service published a key environmental study Friday for a land exchange to benefit a proposed resort atop Wolf Creek Pass.The publication of the draft environmental impact statement triggers a 45-day public comment period that will include meetings this month in Pagosa Springs, Monte Vista and Creede.The proposed Village at Wolf Creek has been down this road before. Since the mid-1980s, Texas businessman B.J. �Red� McCombs has wanted to build a resort village for skiers at Wolf Creek. But after a falling out with the owners of Wolf Creek Ski Area and a flurry of lawsuits, McCombs still doesn�t have the road access he needs to build on his 287 acres of private land.His current plan asks the Forest Service to trade 204 acres of public land for 178 acres of his private land in order to position the village property next to U.S. Highway 160.The Forest Service released a draft environmental impact statement Friday that designates the land trade as the preferred choice of three options. The other two options include doing nothing or approving a road to the current private land parcel.The Forest Service also analyzed three scenarios for building the village.The biggest one calls for 1,700 dwelling units, including two hotels and 821 condominiums. A moderate scenario calls for 500 units, including a 71-room hotel.Even the moderate development scenario would increase tourism by 250,000 visitor-days per year. For comparison, Wolf Creek Ski Area now accounts for 225,000 skier days a year. The Forest Service also looked at the effects of dividing McCombs� property into eight or nine 35-acre home sites. But that�s not a serious plan, said Clint Jones, the lead developer.�This is not something we�re proposing or even thinking about doing,� Jones said.Jones was on the road and did not have time Friday to read the 567-page document.The complex bureaucratic environment is different for this environmental impact statement compared to the 2006 document.Village opponents criticized the 2006 EIS for assuming the village would be built even if the Forest Service did not approve access roads. That biased the analysis in favor of the village by absolving the Forest Service of responsibility for the impacts of the resort, critics said.This time, the �no-action� option will mean just that, said Mike Blakeman, spokesman for Rio Grande National Forest.Foresters say the law requires them to grant access to the private land because of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, which requires private inholdings around the country to be given access roads if the owners want them.However, in this case McCombs asked for a land trade, not access to his land. If the Forest Service picks the do-nothing option, then McCombs would have to start all over again with a new environmental impact statement that analyzes the access road.Forest Supervisor Dan Dallas will decide among the three options.�There�s no pre-decisional thing going on here,� Blakeman said. �(Dallas) certainly feels that he has three viable alternatives to look at and make a decision on.�Each alternative has pluses and minuses for public lands. If the Forest Service does the land trade, it would gain several wetlands and perennial streams, but it would lose a one-acre pond. It also would lose 147 acres of lynx habitat.Christine Canaly, director of the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council, has been a persistent critic of the village. When the original village was proposed in the 1980s � also through a land trade � developers were talking about building only a few hundred housing units. That mushroomed in the 1990s into plans for a 10,000-person town.�I�m going to look at it through the eyes of what the original environmental assessment said,� Canaly said.The Forest Service consciously did not consider the financial viability of the village, human health problems at high altitude and the risk of wildfires. It also did not consider buying the private property from McCombs because it would need funds and he would have to be willing to sell [email protected] Group says collusion apparent in Village at Wolf Creek development project Village at Wolf Creek at a glance The U.S. Forest Service is considering three options for the proposed resort atop Wolf Creek Pass:Do nothing.Trade 204 acres of forest land next to U.S. Highway 160 for 178 acres of private land below Wolf Creek Ski Area.Approve a road to the existing private land below Wolf Creek Ski Area.What�s nextThe Forest Service will accept public comments for 45 days, in writing and at three meetings next week:Tuesday, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Creede Community Center, Forest Service Road 503.Wednesday, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Aragon Recreation Center, 451 Hot Springs Blvd., Pagosa Springs.Thursday, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Rio Grande County Annex, 965 6th St., Del Norte.

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Home Page »News »Regional News » Forecast for Colorado River? High and dry Forecast for Colorado River? High and dry ‘The bottom line is, demand is ahead of supply,’ senior water engineer says GLENWOOD SPRINGS � Planners and engineers in the Colorado River Basin say a parched future could be in store for the region during the next 50 years as they prepare for a seven-state meeting in Las Vegas next week.Senior Colorado River District water resources engineer David Kanzer said Tuesday communities in the basin are living beyond their means. He says it is worse for river communities downstream.Planners and engineers have spent three years and $4 million to forecast water supply and demand scenarios from now through 2060, and they say the consequences could be dire for the river with headwaters in Colorado.�The bottom line is, demand is ahead of supply. We are living beyond our means, and the gap is greatest in the Lower Basin,� Kanzer said.Kanzer presented a summary of the Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study to the Colorado River District�s 15-member board during the board�s quarterly meeting on Tuesday in Glenwood Springs, hoping to come up with a negotiation strategy before the Las Vegas summit. The public was not invited.Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Bureau of Reclamation officials have warned that the Colorado River�s historical 15 million acre-feet per year flow has been reduced by 12 years of drought to about 12 million acre-feet. Officials say an acre-foot can meet the water needs of up to two families per year.Water interests and the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming together lay claim to all the water in the river and then some.Officials are concerned the river won�t be able over the next 50 years to meet demands of a regional population now about 40 million and growing.Mexico also has a stake in the river, and officials set new rules to share Colorado River water south of the border and let Mexico store water in Lake Mead near Las Vegas.According to The Glenwood Springs Post Independent, the study is an effort to face up to a future in which millions more people, along with farms and industry, will be fighting for the limited supplies. Kanzer said by 2060, the gap is expected to be as much as 8 million acre-feet a year.In the meantime, water regulators are trying to educate the public about the water shortfall that Western states will face. Colorado River Study: www.crwcd.org

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Woman hacked to death in Nightingale Road, Edmonton Woman hacked to death A woman has been hacked to death by a machete-wielding man in the middle of the day. Police were called to the home in Nightingale Road, Edmonton, at 1.30 pm to reports of a stabbing in the front garden. The woman was found in the front garden. People living in nearby houses have been evacuated and police have taped off most of the road. Witnesses at the scene say they saw a man in the street with a machete and others say they saw him killing cats. Lauren Perkins, who lived on Goodwin Road, said: “I was walking down the road when I saw a man with a big knife walking down the street. “Then I saw some police come down and they told me to get off the road. “I just can’t believe something like that would happen. It’s just so shocking.” The next door neighbour of the house where the attack took place, who wished not to be named, said: “I heard lots of screaming and shouting coming from next door. “Then a guy with a knife was in our back garden. There was a lot of blood on the knife and he was just hacking away at stuff. “It’s just unbelievable, I’m so shocked." George Stutianou who was working on a nearby house when the attack happened said: “There were so many police here, there must have been about 30 cars. “I saw some police smashing the doors and the windows of three houses either side to get women and children out. “We were in the road and two policemen were running as fast as they could towards us, shouting at us to run and get out of the street. We just didn’t know what was going on.” After police evacuated the homes armed officers arrived at the scene. Shortly afterwards a 25-year-old man has been arrested and remains in custody.

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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Remembers Paul Walker: "Losing a Loved One Jolts Our Hearts to the Core" Presented By Alyssa Toomey Alex J. Berliner/AP Images Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is reminding us all to appreciate our loved ones in the wake of Paul Walker's tragic death.The 41-year-old pro wrestler turned actor—who was filming Fast & Furious 7 with the late 40-year-old star when he suddenly died in a fiery car crash on Saturday, Nov. 30, in Santa Clarita, Calif., while attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide—took to Instagram on Wednesday, Dec. 4 to honor his dear friend."Losing a loved one jolts our hearts to the core," Johnson, who also costarred with Walker in both Fast Five and Fast & Furious 6 wrote. "It also has a very special way of helping us move forward to live & love as greatly as possible. Hug our loved ones a little tighter. Pray a little stronger. Work a little harder. Smile a little bigger. Life goes on and memories are forever cherished... #PW" NEWS: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson remembers Paul Walker and their bond over fatherhood Eamonn McCormack/WireImage The meaningful message was accompanied by a photo of the famous friends, which shows Walker wrapping his arm around Johnson as both men beam from ear to ear.This isn't the first time the Hercules star has opened up about Walker's tragic passing. He previously spoke out about the pair's bond over fatherhood and shared his first thoughts when he heard about the crash in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly. "When I first met Paul, I think in our late 20s, we were young kids in the business," he said. "Then years later, when I did Fast Five, we had an opportunity to spend a lot of time together and become reacquainted. At that time, we had both been in the business at that time for over a decade, and the most important thing that we had in common was the importance of family time and being a great father to our daughters. We bonded over that." VIDEO: Watch Universal's Paul Walker tribute video Walker is survived by his 15-year-old daughter, Meadow, who is said to be "still in shock" following her father's sudden passing."Not surprisingly, when I got the news that he had passed away, the first words out of my mouth were, 'He has a daughter,'" Johnson told EW. "It's very sad. We can't help but to hope that their final time together was beautiful and strong and an amazing memory."A touching 2-minute tribute video of some of Walker's finest Fast & Furious moments has most recently been posted to the franchise's Facebook page in honor of the late star.If you'd like to learn more about Paul's charity, Reach Out Worldwide, or make a donation, please visit http://www.roww.org. PHOTOS: Paul Walker: A Life in Pictures

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Former Conn. Gov. Finishes 10-Month Prison Term for Corruption Print HARTFORD, Conn – Former Connecticut Gov. John G. Rowland left a federal prison camp Friday after serving more than 10 months for corruption that forced him from office in 2004. Rowland, 48, was released from Loretto Federal Correctional Institution in western Pennsylvania at about 5:20 a.m., said Ruth Bracken, a prison spokeswoman. He has three days to report to probation officers, who will fit him with an electronic ankle bracelet and place him under house arrest for four months. He also must perform 300 hours of community service. The three-term Republican governor resigned in July 2004 amid a corruption investigation and impeachment inquiry, then pleaded guilty the following December to one count of conspiracy to steal honest services, a combination of mail and tax fraud. He admitted accepting more than $100,000 in vacations and chartered trips to Las Vegas from a state contractor and a charter jet company that received a state tax break. Though he received a year-and-a-day sentence, inmates can be released for good behavior after serving about 80 percent of their sentences. Friends said Rowland has no immediate plans other than to reunite with his wife and children. "You can't go through these types of experiences in life and not be changed by it," said Christine Corey, a longtime aide and friend. "If anything, it brought him closer to things he knows and loves." The investigation into corruption during Rowland's administration is still under way. Among others caught up in the investigation, a former Rowland chief of staff, Peter Ellef, and contractor William Tomasso are to be sentenced in April for bribery. Rowland was once a rising star in the Republican party and considered a potential candidate for a cabinet position in the Bush administration. In prison, Rowland's job was to sweep a stairwell, and his uniform was khaki pants and a khaki shirt. He never complained about harassment from the other inmates, his friends said. "Everybody was just wonderful to him," Corey said. "It doesn't matter where he goes. He's a likable guy." Brad Davis, a Hartford radio talk show host and a close Rowland friend, said Rowland started a job training program in prison to teach the inmates interview skills, and another program to help inmates with drug and alcohol problems. He said the gregarious Rowland was able to gel with the men he served time with at Loretto. Rowland's employment now that he's outside prison remains uncertain. Davis said Rowland mentioned motivational speaking. The Rev. Cornell Lewis, a Hartford community activist, said he had talked with the former governor about working with the "Men of Color Initiative" in Hartford, a program that has evolved to patrolling housing tenements and helping young people find jobs. "I think he's a little mellowed out," Lewis said. "His world view consisted of politics. He had to reinvent himself." Advertisement

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What Would Bill Cosby Say? Print What would Bill Cosby say to Rep. Cynthia McKinney? Hand it to Bill Cosby for saying what needs to be said. Cosby was speaking to a rally in New Orleans' predominantly African-American community a day or two ago, and he asked black people to account for what is going on in their own communities. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, "you had the highest murder rate, unto each other. You were dealing drugs to each other. You were impregnating our 13-, 12-, 11-year-old children." Harsh words, but Cosby has been upbraiding his own community on its problems for a while now, much to his credit. So the thought occurs: What would he say to Cynthia McKinney, the black congresswoman from Georgia who has decided to play the race card over an incident in which she was stopped by a Capitol police officer while trying to bypass security. It is a common practice among members of Congress, but they are required to give the Capitol Police a break by wearing a special pin that identifies a member of Congress. McKinney was not wearing the pin that day. She says they should recognize her and the fact that they didn't, or are pretending they didn't, indicates they are discriminating against her because she is black. And she is claiming the incident shows the Capitol Police tendency to engage in racial profiling. The Democrats have tried to tamp this controversy down because McKinney has done this before, and it's embarrassing to Democrats at a time when Republicans could be the party embarrassed by their own members of Congress. So now we have the drama of the Capitol Police trying to decide if McKinney should be arrested or cited for striking an officer, which she did, after he didn't recognize her while she was bypassing security. Some poor U.S. attorney is under pressure right now to take the case, even though it's a groaner. And McKinney is determined to put the white officers in the Capitol Police Department on trial for enforcing the law while white against rule breaking while black. This sounds like a situation that requires Cosby's wisdom. I don't speak for him but if I imagine, I might hear him say: Grow up, Cynthia. You're a member of Congress. Act like one. Obey your own damn rules. Quite trying to make everything in life a racial slight against you. Get back to work and stop whining. I imagine that. We'll see if Bill Cosby or anybody actually tells her. That's My Word. Don't forget my radio show. Check it out here! Watch John Gibson weekdays at 5 p.m. ET on "The Big Story" and send your comments to: [email protected] Read Your Word Advertisement

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Artifacts help pinpoint key Hatfield-McCoy battle Print June 9, 2012: Jordan Stamper, right, and James Ball look over a cabin that marks the site of key events in the Hatfield-McCoy feud. June 9, 2012: A street sign in Matewan, W.Va., bears the names of the two families that once waged the country's most famous feud in this Appalachian region. (AP) LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Hatfield clan New Year's attack on Randolph McCoy's cabin marked a turning point in America's most famous feud -- the homestead was set ablaze, and two McCoys were gunned down. Hatfield family members and supporters were soon thrown in jail. Artifacts recently unearthed appear to pinpoint the location of the 1888 ambush in the woods of Pike County in eastern Kentucky. Excavators found bullets believed to have been fired by the McCoys in self-defense, along with fragments of windows and ceramic from the family's cabin. "This is one of the most famous conflicts in American history, and we've got bullets fired from one of the key battles. It doesn't get any better than that," said Bill Richardson, a West Virginia University extension professor who was part of the recent discovery. [pullquote] The property is owned by Bob Scott, a Hatfield descendant who has suspected for years that the hilly land was the site of the brutal attack. He grew up listening to stories from his parents and grandparents about the 19th-century feud. More On This... America is fascinated with 'Hatfields and McCoys' feud Costner, Paxton bring Hatfield-McCoy feud to small screen Michigan boys unearth 13,000-year-old mastodon bone in backyard dig Oregon man convicted in Indian grave theft and murder-for-hire plot dies in prison Rare Titanic artifacts set for auction Indiana Jones and the mystery of the Belizean crystal skull "My father told me years ago that someday this well would talk," Scott said, referring to the well on the site where Randolph McCoy's daughter Alafair died while trying to flee the attackers. Now backed by the discovery, Scott plans to capitalize on the historic 70-acre site near the West Virginia line. The options include a housing development featuring horseback and ATV trails, he said. Scott's home is about 75 yards from where the cabin stood. The McCoys moved to nearby Pikeville after the homestead was burned. The artifacts were found last year during filming of a National Geographic Channel show. The bullets were discovered burrowed several inches into a hillside overlooking where the McCoy cabin stood, Richardson said. Three different calibers of bullets, including shotgun pellets, were uncovered. The ammunition, found in an area about 30 feet wide, was traced to the same time period as the 1888 battle, Richardson said. "The front of the cabin faces almost directly at the spot where these bullets were," Richardson said. "We know from the oral histories that they were shooting out the front of the cabin and from the upper windows. So they're exactly in the spot where they should be." Also found during the initial search was a piece of charred wood with a nail traced to the McCoy cabin's time period, he said. Later, an archaeological team led by Kim McBride, co-director of the Kentucky Archaeological Survey, confirmed the location of the McCoy cabin. They found tiny pieces of window glass and ceramics traced to the same period, along with more nails and charred wood. She would like to return to the site for more excavation work, which could take three to five weeks. There were other clues connecting the property to the McCoys. The deed to the property was traced back to Randolph McCoy, she said. "It was kind of a coming together of all the pieces of evidence," McBride said. The discoveries come amid a surge of interest in the feud that spanned much of the last half of the 19th century. The fighting claimed at least a dozen lives by 1888 and catapulted both families into the American vernacular, becoming shorthand to describe bitter rivalries. The History Channel aired a three-night miniseries about the feud that set basic cable viewing records. The drama starred Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton as the patriarchs -- William Anderson "Devil Anse" Hatfield in West Virginia and Randolph "Ole Ran'l" McCoy in Kentucky. The New Year's attack was one of the bloodiest episodes in the feud. "It was a turning point," Richardson said. "The feud had lasted 23 years up until this battle. And then 20 days later it's virtually over." Now, descendants of both families live peacefully among each other in the Appalachian region. And officials in both states see the potential to reap a financial windfall because of the public's fascination. Attendance was up last June at a three-day Hatfield and McCoy festival held in Matewan and Williamson in West Virginia and in Pike County in Kentucky. The event featured tours, re-enactments, book signings, arts and crafts, and a marathon run. Descendants showed their allegiance by wearing ribbons -- red for Hatfields, blue for McCoys. Many believe the feud was rooted in the Civil War, but the bitterness was perpetuated by disputes over timber rights and even a pig. Historical markers describe other pivotal events in the feud, including the spot where three McCoys -- all sons of Randolph McCoy -- were tied to pawpaw trees and shot to death by an unofficial posse organized by Devil Anse Hatfield. He was avenging the death of his brother Elliston at the hands of the McCoys. Scott counts descendants from both families as friends. "It's very unique to stand here on New Year's Eve and realize what happened," he said. "It's sad that that occurred, but that was a way of life." Although the artifacts were uncovered a few months ago, the discoveries weren't announced until Monday. The new National Geographic Channel series, called "Diggers," premieres Tuesday. The episode detailing the McCoy homestead discovery airs on Jan. 29. Advertisement

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5.1 and 3.9 magnitude earthquakes recorded in Oklahoma Published Print OKLAHOMA CITY – A 5.1 magnitude earthquake shook northwest Oklahoma and was felt in seven other states on Saturday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, the third-largest temblor ever recorded in the state where the power and frequency of earthquakes has dramatically increased in recent years. The earthquake centered about 17 miles north of Fairview in northwestern Oklahoma occurred at 11:07 a.m. and was reportedly felt across Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texas, the USGS said. A second quake measured at 3.9 magnitude struck ten minutes later, followed at 11:41 a.m. by a 2.5 magnitude quake. Both were in the same area of the larger temblor and about 100 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. Fairview police and the Major County Sheriff's Office had no reports of injury or significant damage. Sheriff's dispatcher Cheryl Landes said there had been several calls from concerned residents, but no damage more than pictures knocked off shelves and walls. One woman said she'd wait until it got warmer outside to check her home for damage, Landes said. The strongest earthquake on record in Oklahoma is a magnitude 5.6 temblor centered in Prague, about 55 miles east of Oklahoma City, in November 2011 that damaged 200 buildings and shook a college football stadium in Stillwater, about 65 miles away. The second-strongest was a 5.5 magnitude earthquake in April 1952 that was centered in El Reno, on the western edge of Oklahoma City. Oklahoma's stronger and more frequent earthquakes have been linked to the injection of the briny wastewater left over from oil and gas production underground. Regulators have recommended reducing the volume or shutting down some of the disposal wells. Oil and gas operators in Oklahoma, where the industry is a major economic and political force, have resisted cutting back on their injections of wastewater. The hundreds of quakes have been mostly small to medium sized, and have caused limited damage. But a quake did knock out power in parts of an Oklahoma City suburb several weeks ago, and last month about 200 unhappy residents packed a forum at the state capitol convened by critics of the state's response. Gov. Mary Fallin last month approved the use of nearly $1.4 million in state emergency funds for state agencies working to reduce the number of earthquakes linked to the wastewater disposal. Advertisement

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Home > Crawford County Lifestyle Trumpeter swans found at Pymatuning By Greg SpinksContributing writer January 4, 2013 12:01 AM By Greg SpinksContributing writer January 4, 2013 12:01 AM The 113th annual National Christmas Bird Count was held on Dec. 16 at Pymatuning State Park in Linesville, the day after the bird count at Presque Isle State Park. "We have to have our bird count on a Sunday because of goose hunting at Pymatuning," said Clare Nicholls, the compiler for the local Audubon Society. "We had 16 people involved this year and we counted 84 species of birds which is really good. That is the highest count since I became the compiler back in 2006. But the weather was nice and the temperatures were in the mild 50-degree range so there were plenty of birds." The CBC will end nationwide Saturday, Jan. 5, and then all of the data will be researched, verified and eventually released by the Audubon Society. But at Pymatuning, the birders made some notable discoveries. One of the most amazing was the presence of trumpeter swans. "The Trumpeter Swans were very unusual to find at Pymatuning," Nicholls said. "I have only seen them twice in my life and one of those times was in Wyoming. It was a rare find." Shawn Collins, a Meadville resident, is an avid a birder and photographer who was actively involved in the Presque Isle and Linesville counts. He was able to photograph the birds at Pymatuning. "Trumpeter swans are a very rare bird to find in Crawford County," he said. "But we had three of them at the Fish Hatchery at Pymatuning. Usually, we get tundra swans and an occasional mute swan in this area, but Trumpeter Swans are really something to crow about." Sarah Sargent of the Audubon Society agreed and noted that more than 50 bald eagles were also observed at Pymatuning this year. "We had an excellent bird (count) this year," she said. "The weather was perfect and many of the eagles with no mates this winter were grouped together." Seventy-five white winged crossbills, a bird more common in Canada, were also discovered in the pines around Area J of Pymatuning. This is the first time in four years the crossbills have been seen at Pymatuning, Collins said. The birds, normally found in Canada, are moving south in search of food. The Linesville bird count has been going on since about the middle of the 1940s. "Back then there was a group called the Pymatuning Club which participated in the count," he said. "The Grange would always have a large dinner for the birders, but as the numbers of people involved decreased, the club disbanded in the mid-1990s." Nicholls and others are hopeful more younger people get involved in the CDC and in birding. He started in the 1950s. "When I was on the farm tractor on our dairy farm just outside of Conneautville, there wasn't too much else to do except watch and listen to the birds," he said. Some younger birders have started coming out. "I'm getting older and my hearing isn't all that good. So when I go out, I like to have a younger person who can hear the birds singing better than I can hear." Nicholls had a couple of pointers for anyone younger who wants to become involved in birding. He suggests a good pair of binoculars and a bird identification book; team up with other, older birders; put up a backyard bird feeder to observe and develop a desire to learn about the birds and their songs. "But it takes a lot of patience and good luck as well," he said. "It's a matter of being at the right place at the right time."

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When you make a contribution of support to GPB, you're helping to ensure that we can continue to broadcast the programs you've come to love. Joshua Stewart Host, Morning Edition [email protected] jstewnews Joshua Stewart is the local host of Morning Edition on GPB Radio. He’s also hosted Weekend Edition and filled in on All Things Considered in addition to reporting news from around the state. He came to GPB in 2010 from Tampa, Fla., where he hosted All Things Considered and produced an award-winning local public affairs program called Florida Matters at WUSF Public Media. Joshua’s work has been recognized with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards and numerous Associated Press nods. He grew up along the World’s Most Famous Beach and lived throughout Florida before coming just a little north to Georgia. Joshua also reported and worked with college journalism students in Jacksonville. Working and Career WORKING: The Pendulum Swing - Labor Shortages Coming Soon? Some economists say the United States is facing a labor shortage in the next 10 to 15 years, in part because there’s about to be a mass exodus in the workforce as baby boomers finally retire. That’s... May 12, 2014 - 3:45am WORKING: Forget Your Resume - Where's Your Website? More and more career advisers say job-seekers need a personal website to stand out—the standard resume just isn’t enough anymore. The argument is that having a unique website dedicated to a job-... WORKING: Sharing Employees' Salaries Might Make Them Work Harder Ever wonder what your co-workers take home every payday? Though many workplaces forbid talking about that, new research suggests being open about pay actually makes people work harder. It may sound... WORKING: Why Young College Grads Can't Find Work About one in five young people in Georgia—ages 16 to 24—is out of work. For people in their early 20s, the numbers are even worse at close to 40 percent. Workplace and career expert Brandon Smith... April 7, 2014 - 4:28am WORKING: Making Weekends Work Doesn't Mean Working On The Weekends People who are considered successful don’t just use the work week to get ahead. Many use their weekends, too. But maybe not in the way you think. “What these people realize is, life is like a report... March 31, 2014 - 3:00am

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You are hereHome>News George Jones Is Country's Grand Marshal GRAMMY-winning singer discusses life on the road, recording a new album and the state of country music Photo: Toby Canham/Getty Images George Jones Tweet October 12, 2012 -- 2:38 pm PDT By J. Poet / GRAMMY.com George Jones on Amazon George Jones on iTunesMerle Haggard's tribute to George Jones George Jones has remained one of the more dominant male vocalists in country music since beginning his career in East Texas more than six decades ago. His contributions have been staggering. He's charted nearly 80 Top 10 Billboard Country Songs hits, including "He Stopped Loving Her Today," which reached the top of the chart and earned Jones his first GRAMMY for Best Country Vocal Performance, Male in 1980. He was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1992, was a Kennedy Center Honors recipient in 2008 and in 2012 was honored with The Recording Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award. Frank Sinatra once amusingly called him "the second best singer in America."Earlier this year, ahead of the singer's 81st birthday in September, he announced he would bid the road farewell with his final tour, which he's calling the Grand Tour in honor of his 1974 album of the same name. Currently in the middle of his U.S. tour, Jones discussed life on the road; recording a new album; his wife, Nancy; and the state of country music today. You've always said touring was your life. How do you feel about stopping?It's bittersweet. I love touring and seeing the fans, but I'm ready to slow down and spend more time at home and with my family. I'm sure I'll miss it though.Is touring harder or easier than it was 20 years ago?That's easy. It's harder because I'm not as young as I once was, but it's easier because we travel in a bus that was built to our specifications. It has all the comforts of home, including a full kitchen. In the early years, we traveled in station wagons with all our gear strapped to the top. Not too comfortable.What are you going to do with your free time?I'm going to play with my grandkids and mow the pastures on my farm in the summertime. I love to get out on the tractor and mow. We have a fully stocked pond so I might do some fishing, too.Do you have a favorite song or a performance that stands out as you look back on your career?"He Stopped Loving Her Today." It was my biggest hit and still gets the biggest fan reaction every time. I refused to record the song when it was first proposed to me. I told my producer, Billy Sherrill, that no one would want to listen to it because it was too sad. Every album I recorded, he would bring it up again until I finally gave in and recorded it. I'm glad he was so persistent.You're in the process of making a new record. How do you approach a session?We listen to a lot of material to find the best songs to record. I have input from producers, writers, song pluggers, and my wife. I like to get opinions from everyone to see what they like. I've recorded just about every kind of song that [can] be written — up-tempo, ballads, funny, serious, duets, thought-provoking, and controversial. It really depends on the song.Do you approach a session differently than you approach a live show?A session is different because I have to learn the new songs. Then the musicians come in and record the tracks, [and] then I come in and sing the songs. My bandleader, Bobby Birkhead, takes care of the set list each night, but it doesn't vary much because we have videos and special effects that have to be timed with the songs.When you're singing, do you become the song or does the song become you?I guess I become the song and take on the persona of the song. When it's a ballad or sad song, I'm very serious, but if it's funny or up-tempo, I like to cut up a little.How do you feel about the state of country music today?I have been vocal about how I feel about today's country music. I'm not happy about it. The music isn't bad, it just isn't what I call country. Most of it is pop or rock and roll.Does marriage agree with you?You obviously have never met my wife or you'd know I wouldn't answer that question with anything but "yes!" Seriously though, Nancy completely agrees with me. I credit her with me still being alive. She has stood by me through thick and thin. She's the best wife anyone could ever have.(J. Poet lives in San Francisco and writes about Native, folk, country, Americana, and world music for many national and international publications and websites.) Similar Articles GRAMMY Insider: Carrie Underwood, Adam Levine, Rihanna, Billie Joe Armstrong, Britney Spears, And More Country Great George Jones Dies Similar Videos George Jones Wins Best Country Vocal Performance, Male George Jones: Lifetime Achievement Award Acceptance Similar Photos George Jones And Gregg Allman George Jones Similar Blogs 54th GRAMMY Week A Special Affair GRAMMY Week Blogs The Gift Of Giving Back

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Playing With Fire The Druze community, as well as the Circassians in Israel, has for the past 50 years been the living proof that you don't have to be Jewish to be a loyal citizen of Israel or to share with Israel's Jewish citizens the burden of defending the country. Moshe Arens Nov 08, 2007 12:00 AM Last week's violent clashes between the police and the Druze inhabitants of Peki'in should be a wake-up call for Israel that we are facing a problem which is too hot to be handled by local police officers. The dimensions of the problem, the underlying anger and rage of the villagers and the support for them in much of the Druze community in Israel, go far beyond the unruly, and possibly criminal, behavior of some of the inhabitants of this Druze village. The real problem here was not their acts of vandalism but rather that the decision on how to attempt to control these acts was made by the local police and not at the highest level of the government, in full recognition of all the ramifications of this local problem if it spun out of control. The resulting violence which engulfed the whole village and led to many injuries threatens to endanger the long-standing relations between the State of Israel and the Druze community. The Druze community, as well as the Circassians in Israel, has for the past 50 years been the living proof that you don't have to be Jewish to be a loyal citizen of Israel or to share with Israel's Jewish citizens the burden of defending the country against its enemies. The Druze, whose language and culture are Arab, have demonstrated that in itself that is no obstacle to being an integral part of Israeli society. They might be the tipping point of Israel's minority population, whose example would be followed in time by the other segments of Israel's Arab minorities.But for this to happen the Israeli government must have a policy toward Israel's minorities. A policy whose aim is the establishment of equality of rights and obligations among all segments of the population. A fundamental part of such a policy must obviously be affirmative action toward the Druze community, demonstrating the advantages that are attained by those who serve in the IDF.It may come as a surprise to many Israelis that this has not been the policy of Israeli governments. For many years, it was quite the contrary. Until relatively recently, Druze soldiers in the IDF did not enjoy equality of opportunity with Jewish soldiers. Many branches of the service and the highest ranks were closed to them. It was only during my first two tenures in the Ministry of Defense that this discriminatory policy was changed, and that turned out to be a long and laborious process. When I entered the Foreign Ministry in 1988, not a single Druze was a member of the foreign service. A policy instituted by me, that Druze who had served in the IDF be recruited into the foreign service, in time gave Israel its first Druze consuls and ambassadors. Other government ministries, and government offices, to this day do not pursue such a policy. Nor does the Supreme Court have a single Druze judge. It is hard to understand why the ministers who preceded me in the Ministry of Defense and in the Foreign Ministry did not adopt such a policy, and why the government now does not insist that such a policy be pursued in all ministries and government offices.The recurrent talk of the need to give Israel's minority population representation on the boards of government companies, regardless of whether they have served in the IDF; the elevation of Arab MKs to membership in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and membership in the Cabinet, may at first sight seem like the most progressive of measures, but it is actually counterproductive. To the Druze, it demonstrates that serving in the army is nothing special, and to the rest of the minority population, it demonstrates that equality of obligations is not one of the norms of Israeli society. When members of the Druze community argue that Arab Israelis who do not serve in the IDF are passing them in advancement economically and professionally, there is an element of truth in their complaints, since those not serving in the IDF have a three-year head start on those who fulfill their obligations as citizens of Israel. Now along comes the present government and it announces a policy of national service for those who do not serve in the IDF. What does this say to the Druze community? That there is nothing special in putting your life on the line for the defense of Israel. So why should they continue to do so? Rather than the rest of the minority population following the example of the Druze population and accepting the full obligations of citizenship, we may next find the Druze following the others and ceasing to serve in defense of their country. The Druze community is a tipping point for relations between the State of Israel and its minorities. What happened in Peki'in was far too important to have been left to the discretion of the local police. Moshe Arens Haaretz Contributor Want to enjoy 'Zen' reading - with no ads and just the article? Subscribe today

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INDIAN LAKE - H. Israel Zalazar, a resident of Indian Lake, was sworn in as a citizen of the United States of America Wednesday, July 17. The ceremony, attended by his wife, Julie Ana Miller, son, Caleb Israel, and the Rev. E. Paul and Shirley Miller, took place at the Department of Homeland Security in Latham. Julie Miller, Argentine-born but a native of Indian Lake, and Zalazar met in Argentina while serving under Word of Life International in Buenos Aires, Province for nearly 10 years. The Zalazars were married in Argentina and re-affirmed their vows in a lovely stone chapel between Ticonderoga and Hague. Julie, Israel and Caleb will return to Argentina Aug. 22 to continue their ministry as church planters and leadership developers under the Baptist Union of Northwestern Argentina and World Venture International. While their former ministry centered around the low-land, humid pampas, their new area of service will begin 5,000 feet above sea level and go as high as 14,500 feet above sea level. "We wish God's blessings on Israel and his family as they continue to share the gospel with others in the land of silver and gauchos," Paul Miller said.

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Marysville police use stun gun to subdue man with knife Herald Staff Published: Tuesday, January 8, 2013, 6:09 p.m. MARYSVILLE -- Police in Marysville used an electronic stun gun Monday afternoon to subdue a man who walked toward them with a knife in his hand, according to court documents.The suspect, 64, was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of two counts of assault.A Marysville man, 35, told police that he saw the suspect shirtless and without shoes standing outside an apartment unit in the 1300 block of Cedar Avenue. The suspect reportedly reached into his pocket, pulled out a large knife and began walking toward him while making stabbing motions.When police arrived, the man allegedly pulled the knife from a back pocket and began walking down the stairs toward them. They ordered him to drop the knife, but he continued walking in their direction. Three officers had their guns drawn, according to court records.He was shot with a stun gun when he was within eight feet, court papers said. He fell to the ground. He was taken to a hospital before being taken to the jail.While at the hospital, he allegedly punched a medical worker in the mouth. Story tags » • Marysville • Crime

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Tribal fishing activist Billy Frank Jr. dies Billy Frank Jr. poses for a photo near Frank’s Landing on the Nisqually River in Nisqually in 2013. By Jerry Cornfield and Eric StevickHerald Writers Published: Monday, May 5, 2014, 7:57 p.m. Billy Frank Jr., a pony-tailed tribal fisherman who led the fight to restore fishing rights for American Indians four decades ago and never stopped battling to preserve them, died Monday. He was 83. The cause of his death was not immediately known. A seminal political figure of the last half-century, Frank helped transform the relationship between the state and sovereign tribes from one rooted in confrontation to one built with collaboration. “Billy Frank was a legend among men,” said U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. “Today, America lost a civil rights leader whose impact will be felt for generations to come.” His unyielding resolve on behalf of Native Americans — demonstrated through a life of activism inside and outside the offices of government — inspired those in tribes with whom he worked. “Billy had a saying I just loved,” said Terry Williams, who heads the fisheries and natural resources department for the Tulalip Tribes. “He’d say, ‘You have got to tell the truth and recognize the truth.’ That’s what we have faced all our lives.” Telling the truth of fishing rights became a hallmark early on for Frank, who was a member of the Nisqually Tribe near Olympia. Frank was first arrested for salmon fishing as a 14-year-old in 1945. In the 1960s he and others were repeatedly arrested as they staged “fish ins.” These were basically protests at which they insisted treaties signed in the 1850s when their tribe ceded land to white settlers guaranteed them the right to fish in their “usual and accustomed” fishing grounds. Frank was jailed more than 50 times. Their efforts were vindicated in 1974, when U.S. District Judge George Boldt affirmed the tribes’ right to half of the fish harvest and the nation’s obligation to honor the old treaties. This year, Gov. Jay Inslee signed a new law creating a process for people arrested in those so-called “fish wars” to get their criminal convictions vacated. “I’m thankful Billy was here to see the 2014 Legislature pass a bill helping to overturn convictions from treaty protests,” Inslee said in a statement. “Billy was right on this issue and the state owed this gesture of justice to him and others who jeopardized their liberty to fight for treaty rights.” The Boldt decision didn’t end the fight, as Frank spent the ensuing 40 years pressing state and federal leaders on the need for protecting natural resources to ensure healthy runs of fish, especially salmon. “Billy dedicated his life to protecting our traditional way of life and our salmon,” reads a statement posted on the Nisqually Tribe’s website, which announced Frank’s passing. “Along the way, Billy achieved national and international recognition as a towering figure protecting treaty rights, natural resources and the environment.” The Boldt decision led to creation of the Northwest Indians Fisheries Commission and a platform for Frank when he became its chairman in 1981. In that role he strived for tribes, governments and private interests to agree on ways to cooperatively manage natural resources around the state. “Ours is a success story,” he wrote in a piece on the commission website. “Competition for natural resources in the past was fierce and often ended up with confrontations in court, wasting valuable time and limited financial resources. Cooperative management in the last twenty-odd years demonstrated a new way to overcome many of these differences.” It’s not always achieved easily. Currently, tribes want Inslee to impose tougher standards aimed at reducing the amount of pollution in fish consumed by humans. On the opposite side are corporations like Boeing, worried about the potential price tag of complying. Frank and other tribal members met with federal environmental regulators recently to push them to pressure the state to act. More stringent standards would especially protect Native Americans who eat large amounts of salmon and other fish from Washington state waters. And, of late, Frank had taken to the front lines of the fight against increased rail shipments of oil and coal in the state. “Our environment, health, safety and communities are at risk from decisions being made now to transport and export trainloads of coal and oil through western Washington,” he wrote in a final post on his fisheries commission blog entitled “Being Frank.” Frank’s friendly but firm approach impressed Williams in their three decades working together on those issues. “He was always looking for ways to demonstrate that we have the right to self governance and to manage our own resources,” Williams said. His speaking style was a blend of humor, humility and quite often a few swear words thrown in for emphasis. “He would cuss too much,” former Gov. Chris Gregoire recalled with a laugh. “It was part of his vocabulary. It was like adding an exclamation point. It was endearing. It was his way of showing his passion. It helped him get things done.” His legacy will extend across state lines and into the U.S. Capitol where he went often as a tribal leader and fisheries commission chairman. Former Congressman Norm Dicks recalled how the power of Frank’s personality and commitment helped change attitudes in the poisonous atmosphere in the early 70s. “He was able to get people to work together. He was able to alleviate the animosity, and there was a lot to alleviate,” Dicks said. Dicks’ favorite story about Frank is when he proposed a fish hatchery on a stretch of the Nisqually River located on U.S. Army property. It required passage of a federal law , which meant securing support from, among others, liberal Democratic Congressman Ron Dellums of California. Frank made his pitch and Dellums clarified that what the tribal leader wanted him to do was basically take land away from the U.S. military and give it to Native Americans. “Frank said, ‘Yes, sir’ and Dellums then said, ‘Right on brother,’ ” Dicks said. Billy Frank made friends with President Barack Obama, too. Obama released a statement Monday, recounting Frank’s achievements. “Today, thanks to his courage and determined effort, our resources are better protected, and more tribes are able to enjoy the rights preserved for them more than a century ago,” Obama said. In 2012, the president visited the Boeing Co. plant in Everett and called Frank. When Frank told Obama he was standing outside in a long line, the president had him ushered in to join the dignitaries. “The icon he’s become is second to none,” Gregoire said. “What he was able to do is nothing short of amazing. He will be missed beyond anybody’s comprehension.” Story tags » • Agriculture & Fishing • Indian Tribes

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TCA: ABC Family Chief Touts 8 Consecutive Years of Growth 11:16 AM PST 1/9/2012 Marisa Guthrie Marisa Guthrie FACEBOOK Andrew Eccles/ABC Family The network's “groundbreaking storytelling,” “iconic characters” and “warm, positive, optimistic environment” is connecting with millennials, says ABC Fam president Michael Riley. ABC Family president Michael Riley touted the network’s success with millennials – especially young women – that allowed the Disney-owned network to launch a third night of original programming in 2011, even if they must still play host to controversial television evangelist Pat Robertson’s 700 Club. Riley pointed to the network’s “groundbreaking storytelling,” “iconic characters” and “warm, positive, optimistic environment” epitomized in such shows as The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Switched at Birth (which bowed last summer) and newest entry Jane By Design in driving eight consecutive years of ratings growth at the network. Last week, Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game returned with new episodes; Lying Game hit a series high in its new time slot following Liars. And the premiere of Jane the following evening pulled in a solid 1.6 million viewers thanks in part to a strong lead-in from a new episode of Switched at Birth (2.7 million viewers), although that was down compared to the show’s summer run. Riley also confirmed that the network is indeed working on a movie version of cancelled series The Nine Lives of Chloe King. And he noted that ABC Family will continue to look to develop its half-hour comedy slate which currently includes new entry State of Georgia and veteran multi-camera comedy Melissa & Joey. Riley, who took the reigns at ABC Family in October 2010 after predecessor Paul Lee was bumped up to run the broadcast network, touted ABC Family’s robust digital footprint as a way to keep fans engaged with the network’s shows; Pretty Little Liars finished 2011 as the most Tweeted about show. “Social media for us it’s about being part of that conversation,” said Riley. Of course, ABC Family, which acquired the channel from Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network, is obligated under the terms of the sale to air 700 Club, a program that it’s safe to say is not connecting with the millennial generation. “It’s not a show that we put there,” admitted Riley. “I think most viewers understand that. They come to the network to watch the shows they want to watch.” Email: [email protected] Twitter: @MarisaGuthrie MarisaGuthrie

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Come togetherLoew’s holiday show to benefit JC Sandy Recovery E. Assata WrightReporter staff writer With the holiday season now in full swing, a number of Hudson County organizations are celebrating the season, but with a decidedly-post hurricane Sandy commitment. In recent weeks several community groups have chosen to tie their regular end-of-the-year parties and festivities into fundraising activities for hurricane relief efforts.The historic Landmark Loew’s Jersey Theatre is the latest to follow suit. This weekend, the volunteer-run theater will host its annual holiday concert, which this year will benefit Jersey City Sandy Recovery. As in the past, the concert will be preceded by a day-long visit by Santa in the theater’s lobby and will be followed by holiday-themed movie screening.A portion of the concert and movie ticket price will be donated to Jersey City Sandy Recovery, the volunteer-led residents’ group that formed downtown just days after Superstorm Sandy struck. For the past month, the group has helped residents remove waterlogged items from their homes, resolve hurricane-related landlord-tenant issues, and apply for government assistance. The group’s founders now have plans to make Jersey City Recovery a permanent nonprofit that will focus on emergency preparedness throughout Jersey City._____________ ‘This will be a really old fashioned holiday pageant.’ – Colin Egan____________In the meantime, residents who were most affected by the storm’s impact are still faced with having to renovate flooded homes and replace damaged property.“Every organization that’s been helping in the aftermath of the storm has been great,” said Colin Egan, director of the Friends of the Loew’s Jersey Theatre. “But Jersey City Sandy Recovery is an all-volunteer organization. We’re a volunteer organization, too. So we have a unique perspective and admiration for what they did ad hoc, in the middle of the disaster. There’s still an awful lot that has to be done yet [in the way of recovery in Jersey City] and we’ve been talking about trying to help in some way. It occurred to us that we already had this concert show in the pipeline, so it was fairly easy for us to turn this into a benefit for the group.”The holiday concert will take place at the Landmark Loew’s Theatre, 54 Journal Square, on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 6:30 p.m. After the concert, at 7:45 p.m., there will be a screening of the movie “Elf.” Earlier in the day, from noon until 3 p.m., members of the community can stop by for visits and photos with Santa in the theater lobby.Patrons will need to purchase tickets for holiday concert and movie. Visits with Santa are free, although there is a nominal fee for photos with St. Nick.Bells, dreidels, and joyThe concert, now in its third year, will include performances by classical vocalist Teresa Blunda, organist Bernie Anderson, and longtime community favorite Howard Richman, a Jersey City resident and show tune crooner. The choir from St. Dominic’s Academy will also participate in the concert.“This will be a really old fashioned holiday pageant,” said Egan. “They’ll sing everything from ‘Joy to the World’ to ‘Bells of New York City.’ We have Christmas songs and there will even be a sing-along performance of [‘I Have a Little Dreidel.’] We’ve done that for three years and it always gets first a laugh and then a big cheer because people aren’t expecting it.”Indeed, the entire second half of the holiday concert is performed as a sing-along between the audience and the pros onstage. Such concerts were once a mainstay of programming at the Loew’s when the theater was in its heyday, said Egan.Tickets for the concert and film screening are $10 for adults and $7 for children and seniors. (About $3 out of each adult ticket sold will be donated to Jersey City Sandy Recovery.) Patrons who which to attend the concert only can pay a reduced ticket price of $5.“This concert is an affordable price,” noted Egan. “So we think it gives everyone the opportunity to come together, enjoy the show, and celebrate our community’s resilience and be part of helping a very worthy group.”E-mail E. Assata Wright at [email protected].

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Harper's Commonwealth Boycott: PM Threatens To Turn Off Funding Tap Over Sri Lanka Abuses CP | By The Canadian Press Posted: 10/07/2013 3:11 am EDT Updated: 01/23/2014 6:58 pm EST Prime Minister Stephen Harper arrives to the Family Photo and Gala Dinner during the APEC summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia on Monday, October 7, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick | CP Share NUSA DUA, Indonesia - Prime Minister Stephen Harper has used the platform of one international leaders' summit to fire a torpedo into the hull of another.Harper stepped to the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gathering on this idyllic Indonesian tourist island Monday to formally confirm he'll boycott next month's Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka.Perhaps more significantly, Harper threatened that Canada could cut the purse strings to the 64-year-old Commonwealth organization due to ongoing human rights abuses by the host Sri Lankan government.The prime minister cited everything from the impeachment of a chief justice to allegations of extra judicial killings and disappearances and the jailing of political opponents and journalists."In the past two years we have not only seen no improvement in these areas, in almost all of these areas we've seen a considerable rolling back, a considerable worsening of the situation," Harper said in a brief availability at the APEC summit site."Based on that, I have made a decision I will not attend the Commonwealth leaders' summit this fall."Harper said he made the move with "somewhat of a heavy heart," but he has been threatening the boycott since the last Commonwealth leaders' meeting in Australia in 2011, so it comes as little surprise.But his frank displeasure with entire organization, and sabre rattling over funding, raises the stakes.Canada contributes about $20 million annually to various Commonwealth initiatives, including $5 million to the secretariat that runs the organization, making Canada the second largest financial contributor.The grouping of 54 countries formerly under British rule is facing an existential crisis in a global community crowded with international clubs — including those like the Pacific Rim leaders' summit here that are explicitly focused on trade and commerce.Canada could skip a year at APEC — U.S. President Barack Obama was forced by Washington's budget crisis to miss the Bali summit and sent Secretary of State John Kerry in his stead — with barely a notice.But any extended Canadian absence or cash withdrawal from the Commonwealth could be fatal to the tottering enterprise. Sri Lanka holds the chair for the next two years."Obviously we will examine our engagement and our financing of the Commonwealth, which is quite considerable, to make sure that we are wisely using taxpayer dollars and reflecting Canadian values," Harper said."But this is a decision the Commonwealth has made and the Commonwealth will have to live with it."Paul Dewar, the NDP foreign affairs critic, said while his party supports the idea of a Commonwealth boycott, it's not in favour of linking funding to the move."It's a false and disingenuous connection between the merits of an individual member state and those of the broader institution," Dewar said in an email."If they wanted to send a stronger message they could have moved to remove Sri Lanka from the Commonwealth until there are concrete improvements on human rights."Harper held bilateral meetings Monday on the sidelines of the APEC summit with the prime ministers of Australia and New Zealand, two other significant Commonwealth players.Harper's office said the Commonwealth decision was not discussed — however New Zealand Prime Minister John Key later told reporters he did in fact raise the matter with Harper."Definitely, yes, I'm going," Key said of Sri Lanka.Australia's Tony Abbott also told reporters he will attend."You do not make new friends by rubbishing your old friends or abandoning your old friends," said the Australian.While noting every country makes its own calls on such matters, Key said that "if we decided you were going to have to meet New Zealand standards to attend a meeting, there'd be lots of countries we wouldn't go to.""I just don't know that's really going to help New Zealand."Key even credited Chinese President Xi Jinping for selling the virtues of engaging all countries here at the APEC summit."It was one of the points the Chinese president actually made, I think it was yesterday or today, but basically engagement increases understanding and actually leads to change over time," said the New Zealand prime minister.So Harper remains the only leader to boycott the Colombo conference, and won't even send a cabinet-level representative. Parliamentary secretary Deepak Obhrai will represent Canada at the mid-November summit.It is not the first time the Harper government has taken its ball and gone home on the international front.The prime minister snubbed China for four years after coming to office, citing human rights concerns, and Canada refused to participate in a United Nations disarmament conference because North Korea was the chair.Last year, the government shuttered its embassy in Tehran to the dismay of many international observers, who argued a middle power like Canada can only exert influence through engagement.The Sri Lankan government in Colombo repeatedly has accused Canada of playing domestic politics on its back.Canada is the world's largest home of expatriate Tamils, the Sri Lankan minority from which sprung a civil war that lasted decades before ending in a bloody climax in 2009.Canada's Tamils are a tightly knit community focused in the Greater Toronto Area, making them a small but politically potent constituency courted by both the federal Liberal and Conservative parties.While few Canadians could probably cite a single initiative of the Commonwealth grouping or its purpose, those few who care are heavily vested."The feedback we've had from Canadians has been absolutely overwhelming," said Harper, "that they would not expect the prime minister of Canada to attend such an summit."As for that other leaders' conference, Harper wraps up talks at the APEC summit on Tuesday before returning to Canada in mid-week. Nations With The Worst Human Rights Records of These 10 countries were considered to be the most at risk of human rights violations in 2013, according to the Human Rights Risk Atlas. In this photo taken Friday, Sept. 14, 2012, women carry tarpaulin sheets issued by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) back from a distribution point, in Yida camp, South Sudan. Yemeni men march during a protest to demand the repeal of an immunity for ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sanaa on September 11, 2012. In this Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012 photo, a fire is seen inside an apartment, right, of a damaged building due heavy fighting between Free Syrian Army fighters and government forces in Aleppo, Syria. Iraqi federal policemen hold up their national during their graduation ceremony at the Police Training Academy in Baghdad, on November 27, 2012. Buddhist monks study at a Buddhist monastery in Mandalay, northern Myanmar, Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012. Pakistani police cadets shout during the passing out parade in Karachi on December 12, 2012. In this Oct. 23, 2012 photo, Afghan girls share a joke in the center of Lashkar Gah, Helmand province, Afghanistan. In southern Helmand province, one of Afghanistanís deadliest battlefields, angry residents say 11 years of war has brought them widespread insecurity. This handout photo released by the African Union-United Nations Information Support Team shows on December 12, 2012 shows a Somali boy carries a tray nuts and snacks near a market place in Jowhar in Middle Shabelle region north of the capital Mogadishu on December 11, 2012. Members of Congolese president Joseph Kabila's Presidential guard stand in the rain outside the polling station where Kabila casts his ballot in the country's presidential election in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Monday Nov. 28, 2011. Some 100 protesters from the nomadic Arab Misseriya tribe demonstrate in Khartoum on November 28, 2012, proclaiming the flashpoint Abyei region Sudanese territory, ahead of a deadline for Sudan and South Sudan to settle the area's status. Click fullscreen to see the full map. Stephen Harper Indonesia Harper Commonwealth Boycott Stephen Harper APEC Stephen Harper Commonwealth Harper Commonwealth Sri Lanka Stephen Harper Apec Summit Stephen Harper Sri Lanka Canada Sri Lanka Harper Commonwealth Indonesia Harper to boycott Commonwealth summit Harper scrubs Sri Lanka visit over human rights violations Abbott, Harper differ on Sri Lanka Harper explains reasons to boycott Canadian PM won't attend CHOGM Stephen Harper to boycott Commonwealth meeting in Sri Lanka ... Commonwealth human rights progress frustrating, Stephen Harper ... Stephen Harper says he'll boycott Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka, citing ... Suggested For You

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Like what you're reading? Never miss a thing with the HuffPost Canada Business newsletter! Sign me up for the Daily Brief, too. Huffpost Canada Business Get Canada BusinessNewsletters Even Saskatchewan's Premier Wants KFC Tradition Saved Twitter Is Taking Drastic Measures To Save Itself Uber Are Acting Like Criminals, Says Taxi Cartel Boss The True Source Of Millennial Work Stress May Have Just Been Uncovered A Bus You Can Drive Cars Under Will Be Tested This Year CRTC To Probe If Your Cable Co. Is Giving You The 'Skinny' These Are Canada's Most Incredible New Buildings Canada's New Economy Czar Calls For Change, And Soon Facebook Is Changing How It Decides What 'Trending' Content To Display Canadians Risk Becoming House-Rich, Cash-Poor: Survey Commuting By Plane? Niagara Proposes 8-Minute Flights To Toronto Featuring fresh takes and real-time analysis from HuffPost's signature lineup of contributors Keith Brooks Clean Economy Director, Environmental Defence The Key to Creating 18,000 New Canadian Jobs Posted: 11/23/2012 12:27 pm EST Updated: 01/23/2013 5:12 am EST Share Just because a person says something over and over doesn't mean it's true. Take, for example, the assertion that Canada should put the pedal-to-the-metal in the oil sands because the economic benefits outweigh the environmental costs. As a report released today shows, that argument simply is not true. We don't need to choose between a healthy economy and a healthy environment. And doubling down on the oil sands isn't the best way to approach either. The oil sands are an economically risky endeavour and, in addition to the environmental impacts, there are a number of downsides to relying so heavily on a volatile commodity. Moreover, investing our money in renewable energy and energy efficiency would create many more jobs, and reduce pollution. For a concrete example, we looked at the $1.3 billion in taxpayer money our federal government currently hands to the oil industry in the form of subsidies. We asked: what if, instead of subsidizing polluters, the money was invested in industries that cut pollution? We crunched the numbers and found that $1.3 billion invested in renewable energy or energy efficiency could create between 18,000-20,000 jobs. In comparison, that same amount of money invested in oil and gas would yield less than 3,000 jobs. That's a difference of 17,000 jobs! Our conclusion: Clean energy investments yield more bang for our buck (which is why we called the report that.)If this seems surprising, it may be that the oil industry's PR strategy is working. But these numbers are in keeping with international trends, as countries around the world are weaning themselves off fossil fuels and moving towards clean, renewable energy. In 2011, $280 billion was invested in renewables around the world. Globally, over a trillion dollars have been invested in green energy since 2004. Last year also marked a major milestone as investments in electricity from renewable sources topped similar investments in coal, oil and natural gas for the first time. Thanks to all this, employment in renewable energy is booming. Some 5-million people are now employed in renewables globally, more than double the number employed in 2006. This growth occurred through the recession, and continues today, even as other industries struggle in the wake of the global economic crisis. The prospects for renewables look bright, too. According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy will top coal as a primary source of electricity by 2035.Canada can and should work to capture a larger share of this market. The National Roundtable on the Environment and Economy estimates Canada could have a $60 billion domestic market in low-carbon goods and services, which would create 400,000 jobs. But that's not where we're headed at present.Our fevered commitment to oil is leading Canada in the wrong direction. In an effort to pave the way for oil sands expansion we rolled back environmental legislation at home. And our zeal for oil is also behind our performance at international climate talks, where Canada has repeatedly been singled out as a bad actor. BLOG CONTINUES AFTER SLIDESHOW 10 Facts About Canada's Oil Industry of The oil and gas industries accounted for around $65 billion of economic activity in Canada annually in recent years, or slightly less than 5 per cent of GDP. Source: Canada Energy Research Institute Canada exported some 12,000 cubic metres of oil per day in 1980. By 2010, that number had grown to 112,000 cubic metres daily. Source: Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers Canada refined 300,000 cubic metres daily in 1980; in 2010, that number was slightly down, to 291,000, even though exports of oil had grown tenfold in that time. Source: Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers Despite talk by the federal government that it wants to open Asian markets to Canadian oil, the vast majority of exports still go to the United States -- 97 per cent as of 2009. Source: Natural Resources Canada Canada's proven reserves of 175 billion barrels of oil -- the vast majority of it trapped in the oil sands -- is the second-largest oil stash in the world, after Saudi Arabia's 267 billion. Source: Oil & Gas Journal One-third of Canada's oil sands bitumen stays in the country, and is refined into gasoline, heating oil and diesel. Source: Natural Resources Canada Despite its reputation as the undisputed centre of Canada's oil industry, Alberta accounts for only two-thirds of energy production. British Columbia and Saskatchewan are the second and third-largest producers. Source: Natural Resources Canada Alberta' government will reap $1.2 trillion in royalties from the oil sands over the next 35 years, according to the Canadian Energy Research Institute. Thanks to improvements in energy efficiency, and a weakening of the country's manufacturing base, oil consumption in Canada has had virtually no net change in 30 years. Consumption went from 287,000 cubic metres daily in 1980 to 260,000 cubic metres daily in 2010. Source: Source: Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers The National Energy Board says oil and gas employs 257,000 people in Canada, not including gas station employees. And the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers says the oil sands alone will grow from 75,000 jobs to 905,000 jobs by 2035 -- assuming, of course, the price of oil holds up. Current Slide If Canada's tarnished reputation isn't enough to provoke our country to change tacks, hopefully understanding the economics will. Increasing our dependence on the oil sands isn't a smart economic strategy. And if we carry on down this road, we could be left high and dry. Oil sands need high prices to be profitable, but high prices are not a sure thing. Oil is a volatile commodity, and prices swing up and down and all around. Just last week, reports of America's newfound oil provoked questions about whether the U.S. -- traditionally the largest buyer of Canadian oil -- would have any future demand for our product. It also raised questions about continued high prices for North American oil, and a drop in prices would threaten the entire oil sands undertaking. And as we increase our reliance on oil, we increase our exposure to this volatility. We saw a glimpse of what this could mean just last week when both the Alberta and Federal governments said they won't be able to balance budgets as quickly as planned because of low oil prices. The good news is that there is an alternative, one that is better for our economy and our environment. And the better news is that Canadians have a history of making good choices when faced with tough decisions. We'll make the right choice this time, and looking back, we'll be glad we did, and glad that Canada is on the right side of history. Follow Keith Brooks on Twitter: www.twitter.com/keithdbrooks Canadian Energy Strategy Oilsands Canada Oil Sands "The Huffington Post" is a registered trademark of TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. All rights reserved. 2016© Part of HuffPost Business

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Bush Defends Hurricane Record Jason Linkins Editor, Eat the Press So: remember Hurricane Katrina? Well, George W. Bush does, and, as you might expect, he's got some regrets! But before you start thinking to yourself that our soon-to-be ex-President has stimulated the economy by buying himself a clue, hold up: as it turns out, Bush's regrets are those of the terminally self-absorbed: "I think being called a racist because of Katrina was a low point," Bush said in an interview with CNN's Larry King. In the days immediately following the disaster, Bush came under fire for what many characterized as a slow federal response to aiding victims, especially in the heavily African-American, Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood of New Orleans. During a live hurricane relief fundraiser on network television, entertainer Kanye West said "George Bush doesn't care about black people." So there you have it. Kanye West totally made the president sad, and how dare he! Surely there's some other dude who's supposed to take responsibility for things like "slow Federal responses to aiding victims," but you never hear that guy getting called out on Kanye's mixtapes. Bush continues his defense, thusly: "In fact, the truth of the matter is the response was pretty darn quick," Bush said, "if you think about the fact that the Coast Guard and a lot of brave kids were pulling 30,000 people off of roofs as soon as the storm passed, as soon as they found people on those roofs." Well, in the annals of Bush's "quick responses," Katrina didn't manage to rate the level of alacrity that the President accorded, say, Terri Schiavo. And, hey, no one's exactly running around saying that the Coast Guard doesn't care about black people, but it's worth pointing out that President Bush did preside over a government where you could get in trouble for helping the Coast Guard. Ultimately, for Bush, it all comes down to math: By the way, we have had, that I know of, sitting right here, eight hurricanes, major hurricanes, and seven and a half were dealt with the way everybody expected them to be dealt with. The Mississippi part of Katrina was dealt with well, even though it was a really horrible hurricane." "My brother was governor of Florida, and seven major hurricanes hit there. And the response was always pretty good. It's the response out of New Orleans and Louisiana which was not as good as we would have liked." See! When you get right down to it, it was only that nagging half a hurricane -- the part where the city squarely hit by Katrina ended up getting destroyed - that stands out as a blemish on the Bush Hurricane Legacy. Plenty of other places weren't leveled by Katrina. North Dakota, for example, came out just fine, and no one ever gives Bush credit for that! Instead, everyone keeps harping on this sort of stuff. George W Bush Eat The Press Kanye West Hurricane Katrina Bush Legacy

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Bradlee Dean, Rock Musician Turned Preacher, Discusses Allegations He Called For 'Execution Of Gays' Queer Voices Editor-at-Large, The Huffington Post The Christian heavy metal rocker whose ministry former presidential candidate and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann helped raise money for said that comments he made that were reported in 2010 as appearing to support the execution of homosexuals were taken out of context. But several times during our interview yesterday he refused to answer a simple yes or no question as to whether he believes some Muslims are “more moral” than Christians because they support the death penalty for homosexuality. Bradlee Dean, founder of You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International in Minnesota, also a musician and a radio host, filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow last July regarding a clip from his radio program which she aired in August of 2010. In the clip, Dean, after saying that "the Muslims are calling for the execution of homosexuals in America," says Muslims “seem to be more moral” than Christians. In the same broadcast, Maddow read a disclaimer Dean had posted on his website stating"we have never and will never call for the execution of homosexuals.” Speaking on my radio program on SiriusXM OutQ, Dean, at times quite heated, said that when he had made the statement that Muslims seem "more moral," he only meant it as “a wake up call for the [Christian] church.” Dean said the statements he made were truncated, reported with a middle portion removed. The clip, as played on "The Rachel Maddow Show," is as follows: "The Muslims are calling for the execution of homosexuals in America. They themselves are upholding the laws that are even in the Bible of of Judeo-Christian God. But they seem to be more moral than even the American Christians do, because these people are livid about enforcing their laws. They know homosexuality is an abomination. If Americans won’t enforce the laws, God will raise a foreign enemy to do just that." Dean said that the following statements was missing, and insists that they change the context of what he said: "And I continually reach out to the homosexual communities on this radio show, and I warn them, with one’s love. Here you have Obama condemning it behind the backs of the homosexuals but to their faces he’s promoting it. I say this to my gay friends out there, the ones that are continually nitpicking everything I say: Hollywood is promoting immorality and the God of heaven in Jesus’s name is warning you to flee from the wrath to come. Yet you have Muslims calling for your execution." Asked five times, however, if he believed some Muslims are more moral than Christians because they support the execution of gays, Dean refused to answer yes or no, several times repeating the same line: "I have continually reached out to the homosexual community." Dean also defended his band, Junkyard Prophet, part of his ministry, for a presentation in a public high school in Dunkerton, Iowa that made headlines across the country in recent weeks because it included condemnations against homosexuality. School officials were shocked, thinking the lecture was going to be about drugs and bullying in pop music lyrics. Dean, who was turned away from the school and the local community center when he asked if his ministry could return to Dunkerton (so he returned to a local church), said that the media had “blown up” the controversy. Dean has in the past also suggested that Representative Keith Ellison, a Minnesota Democrat who is Muslim, is using support for gay marriage as way to usher in Sharia Law in the United States. He has also linked gays to the Holocaust. Michele Bachmann has helped raise money for Dean's ministry, was a guest star in hist television series and prayed that his ministry would expand and grow. "This ministry, 'You Can Run But You Cannot Hide,' they are not sidetracked, they're on course," Bachmann intoned. "They're way on course. Because they get it. They get what this is all about." Listen to the full interview here: Check out Dean discussing the lawsuit against Rachel Maddow in a 2011 press conference below: More: Rachel Maddow Bradlee Dean Rachel Maddow Sued FOLLOW QUEER VOICES

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After Bin Laden's Death: A Fist, a Heart and a Guitar Eboo Patel Named by US News And World Report as one of America’s Best Leaders As I listened to President Obama explain the chain of events that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden, I couldn't help but think of my friend Eric Greitens. Eric's doctorate at Oxford was on the effects of war on children. Imagine my surprise when he told me that he was training to be a Navy Seal. "But you know how terrible war is, you have been with the orphaned children," I sputtered. "How can you participate in it?" "It is guys with guns that end wars, Eboo," he told me. Eric deployed four times over the last ten years, earning a bronze star and a purple heart. One of his missions was to command a Navy Seal cell that targeted al Qaeda. It was likely some of Eric's buddies -- guys he trained with, maybe guys he trained -- that got bin Laden. Eric titled his book, The Heart and the Fist, for a reason. He knows as well as anyone that you may well need the fist to crush evil but you need the heart to radiate good. The fist is fine for defeating enemies, but the heart is what builds societies. That's what I liked about Obama's speech yesterday. He was very clearly our commander in chief -- recounting how he told C.I.A. Director Leon Panetta to make the capture or killing of Osama bin Laden his top priority, getting frequent briefings on the relevant intelligence and giving the final order that authorized the fatal mission. His demeanor was focused and serious. 'I did what had to be done,' he seemed to be saying. Vanquishing evil is necessary but insufficient. Obama seemed most human to me, most American, most presidential, when he spoke of life, not death. He recalled America in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, a nation shocked and grieving, a country focused more on community than revenge: "On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together. We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one American family." That line brought to mind two key moments. The first involves George Bush. A lot of Americans think of the fist when they think of the post-9/11 George Bush. But I think at least as defining as his roar at Ground Zero and his boasting of "Wanted: Dead or Alive" posters was his visit to an Islamic Center six days after 9/11. There, he spoke movingly not only of Islam being a peaceful faith but about how Muslim women with headscarves ought to feel safe in this country: "I've been told that some fear to leave; some don't want to go shopping for their families; some don't want to go about their ordinary daily routines because, by wearing cover, they're afraid they'll be intimidated. That should not and that will not stand in America." He went on to make it clear whose side he was on, which America he hoped to build. "Those who feel like they can intimidate our fellow citizens to take out their anger don't represent the best of America, they represent the worst of humankind, and they should be ashamed of that kind of behavior." The second moment took place nearly a year later, on September 25, 2002 -- Bruce Springsteen at the United Center. During the climax of "The Rising," as Springsteen was singing -- Sky of longing and emptiness (a dream of life), Sky of fullness, sky of blessed life (a dream of life) -- I saw out of the corner of my eye a young woman in a Muslim headscarf, eyes closed, hands raised. Woody Guthrie had a message scrawled on his guitar: "This machine kills fascists." Sometimes you need the aid of guns in that mission. But when we think of who we want to be, not just what we need to destroy, American guns are second to American guitars. This was originally posted on "On Faith." Follow Eboo Patel on Twitter: www.twitter.com/EbooPatel Barack Obama Osama Bin Laden Osama Bin Laden Dead Bin Laden Dead

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News Wrong kind of snow in tunnel... CHRISTIAN WOLMAR Transport Correspondent CHRISTIAN WOLMARTransport Correspondent About 1,000 passengers on two Eurostar trains were stuck in the Channel Tunnel for several hours on Monday as a result of technical problems caused by snow and ice, raising doubts about the ability of the tunnel to cope with extreme weather conditions. One full train of 800 passengers which set out at 1pm on Monday did not reach Paris until 4am yesterday, taking 15 hours for a journey that should have taken three. They were stuck in the tunnel for three hours and at one point the emergency batteries ran low, leaving them in darkness. Eventually, after the train was rescued, they transferred by bus to a conventional train at Calais. A second group of more than150 people, who left London just before 9am on a train to Brussels took nine hours to reach Calais, after being stuck first on British tracks and then in the tunnel for two hours. Both trains failed completely and had to be hauled out of the tunnel by locomotives which are kept available for the task. The Le Shuttle tourist service for cars between Folkestone and Calais was also cancelled for much of Monday. Already, by 8.30am on Monday many trains had been delayed because a Shuttle train failed at the French portal, causing the blockage of one of the two lines through the tunnel. The delays and cancellations are a further setback to the troubled tunnel's owner, Eurotunnel - which is at present not paying interest on pounds 8bn debts - as one of its key selling points has been its ability to operate reliably during the winter months when Channel crossings are disrupted by the weather. The problem seems to be that the delicate electronics of the trains and tunnel cannot withstand the potent mix of snow, salt and ice which is brought into the tunnel during periods of extreme cold. But a spokeswoman for Eurotunnel defended the tunnel: "The ferries were cancelled and were unable to dock, the motorways blocked, and the Paris airports were closed. Although the tunnel is protected, the extreme weather conditions outside caused severe problems but we did manage to stay open throughout, even if we weren't providing a full service." She emphasised that the tunnel had operated largely without problems during the previous bouts of poor weather this winter but in this case, "snow, ice and moisture carried into the tunnel to create problems when combined with the micro climate of the tunnel." More about: Eurotunnel

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VoicesColumnistsThomas Sutcliffe Tom Sutcliffe: We wrinklies really don't have it so bad The lottery of birth date has given the current generation of over-50s unearned advantages Tuesday 23 March 2010 00:00 BST BBC ageism row reignited" reads the headline on the Anchor Trust's website, giving details of its "Older Faces Audit". Well, they hope anyway, since pretty much the sole purpose of the survey is to get the words Anchor Trust into the papers – and mere smouldering isn't going to pay off terribly well. They want the towering clouds of black smoke that you get when indignation burns – and to that end some poor sap has been given the task of counting wrinklies on the telly to demonstrate that there's not nearly enough of them.I'm a wrinkly myself for these purposes, incidentally, since they were hunting for over-50s – and as such I suppose I should feel a surge of umbrage at the revelation that the facially-weathered turn out to be under-represented on the small screen. Apparently only 20 per cent of presenters and actors on BBC1 are over 50 compared to 34 per cent in the population at large. ITV performed slightly better with 27 per cent of over 50s while BBC2 inconveniently bucked the trend completely by featuring 37 per cent of over-50s – which logically should spark a protest by the more youthful mid-lifer, I guess. Given that these findings are drawn from just one week's broadcasting you might not want to set off just yet, though... whether you're agitating for more grey hair or less. I imagine that the BBC could readily find a broadcasting week in which the balance tilted a bit more favourably to equable representation. But, if it was true, and represented a consistent prejudice in favour of youth (which would fit with broad expectations, surely) should we really be outraged by it? I find it a little difficult to get worked up – even though I suppose I should be waving my birth certificate at the BBC's commissioning editors and demanding that they give middle-age a chance. It's not that I'm in favour of ageism. In fact I've noticed that my opposition to this particular form of discrimination grows stronger with every passing year. It's not a good idea that the BBC should institute an informal retirement age which comes into effect 20 to 30 years before the official one. But I am a bit wary of demographic selfishness – and I worry about the effect on society as a whole of a cohort of stroppy and demanding 50-somethings. Just after I'd seen that report on the "older faces audit", for instance, I noted another survey (by YouGov) which reported that couples are delaying getting married and starting families because they simply cannot afford to buy their own house. The rise of house prices over the last decade or so – a rise which has disproportionately enriched the over-50s, it should be remembered – has made things very difficult for first-time buyers. This too is a social unfairness – but I don't suppose that baby-boomers will be eagerly supporting attempts to drive the market down to more realistic levels. They ("we" in my case) are inclined to take our dumb luck in this respect as an entitlement. We've already calculated that the capital is ours, and mentally built our retirement plans on it. At the same time we're eagle-eyed about generational unfairnesses that don't run in our favour. That well-paid job which helped us pay off the mortgage early? We'd like to hold on to it a bit longer if you don't mind – given the dent the recession has left in the pension fund. And tough luck if that makes it tougher for you to pay your mortgage... or even get one in the first place. By all means lets be vigilant about the unreflective prejudices against the over-50s. But let's not forget that the lottery of birth date has given our generation of over-50s a lot of unearned advantages too. If we really want social equity we may have to be prepared to share them. Putting in an heroic effort every night I've always been a little impatient when actors talk about "courage" and "risk" – but occasionally you encounter a production which makes you realise there might be something to it. Dennis Kelly's play The Gods Weep is one such – not a discreditable failure, in my view, but a pretty conspicuous one for all that. It's been through fierce cropping to get it to two and a half hours long (one rumour had it that the original text ran for close to five hours) and the scars have not all healed well, as several critics pointed out. Everyone involved in this production must know that they're the equivalent of stokers on the Titanic – required to stay at their posts and bail frantically despite the rising waterline. And yet they do it valiantly. Jeremy Irons, in particular, gives a terrific performance as the central character – faced every night with the actors' nightmare of having to accurately forget lines that he's spent weeks memorising. Reading about the Olivier Awards yesterday it made me think that the theatre really should have its equivalent of Purple Hearts, for wounds honourably received in combat. The winners the other night had already been richly rewarded with great reviews, packed houses and the nightly buzz of success. Surely there's room for at least one trophy to console those who stick to their post in the face of insuperable odds and withering flanking fire? Chocolate for breakfast? It's just wrong In one of my favourite gags from The IT Crowd Jen asks Moss what he had for breakfast. "Smarties cereal", he replies. "Oh my God", she says, appalled, "I didn't even know Smarties made a cereal". "They don't", Moss explains, "It's just Smarties... in a bowl... with milk". It was a joke about the cretinous fecklessness of young males – but it seems it wasn't really a joke at all, just a prediction. Kellogg's has started marketing a cereal – it doesn't deserve to be named – which consists of "crispy cereal shells filled with a chocolate hazelnut centre". According to the company's sales director it offers a way to "retain young adults in the habit of eating breakfast cereal" – though only, it seems, if the cereal is actually a kind of lightly modified Ferrero Rocher. I don't know which is the more disgusting : the idea of attempting to eat a bowl of this grim product or the fact that, in the teeth of growing anxiety about youthful obesity, a notionally reputable company would spend £4m peddling such nutritional trash – marketing it through Facebook and Twitter and music festivals. I am happy to pass on a sample of the contagious viral excitement generated on one student website. "It tasted like a dog had farted directly into my mouth", wrote one consumer. Others begged to differ: "Tastes of sick" wrote one. "Rank and stale tasting" posted another. Sometimes you feel food labelling regulation isn't nearly enough... we need prison sentences too. More about: Olivier Awards

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Obama Scripts History, Votes Early Share > News > Americas Obama Scripts History, Votes Early By IndiaTimesOctober 26, 2012 2k reddit gplus WASHINGTON: Barack Obama scripted history when he cast his ballot 12 days ahead of the November 6 polls, becoming the first sitting US President to vote early in the election described by him as an "extremely tight" race between him and his Republican rival Mitt Romney. Amidst his hectic electioneering schedule, 51-year-old Obama flew in from Richmond in Virginia to cast his vote at the Martin Luther King Community Center in his home town of Chicago on Thursday.As Obama entered the polling booth, he greeted everybody and said it is exciting to get to vote early."This is the first time a President's ever going to be early voting," he said. "That's pretty exciting." After a woman election official asked for his driver's licence for identification purposes, he said: "Oh, you're right" and took out his driver's licence from his pocket. "Now ignore the fact that there's no grey hair in that picture," he said in a lighter vein.Following this, the election official asked him a question about paperwork, something about whether it was the right form he had, according to a White House pool report."I assume it is," he replied. "I hope so. If not, this will be really embarrassing." While waiting, he asked if they had been getting a lot of early voters and was told they were."It makes such a difference," he said. Then he remarked, "I'm just glad I renewed my driver's license."According to the pool report, the woman, who took his licence, held it up and gave it the sort of skeptical examination a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer would.Obama laughed. "Did you see that?" he said, then mimicked her looking over the licence. PTI 2k Follow @indiatimes Next on Indiatimes News: WikiLeaks Releases US Military Files Spotlight

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Government ministers fear for their jobs THE island’s government ministers must be wondering if their jobs are safe. Today’s Isle of Man Examiner reveals that the chief minister, Allan Bell, is considering a reshuffle in the spring after the Legislative Council elections.Mr Bell also writes exclusively for today’s paper about how his government’s progress so far. What do you think? Email us on opininosATnewsiom.co.im once you’ve read it to give your view. The Examiner also reveals that Louis Hamilton, the Formula One star, has paid a flying visit to the island.The paper also asks 3FM boss Ron Berry about his proposal to house all three radio stations in the same building.The film studios in which the Isle of Man has a substantial stake has announced expansion plans. The Examiner asks Laurence Skelly MHK, the politician responsible for the film industry in the island, about it.Meanwhile, as the island mourns guitar teacher John Nelson, we have a number of tributes. The paper also reveals how Fred Dibnah’s son has helped to restore an historic steam train.In the centre pages, we join the island’s Met Office to see how its staff work.Sport celebrates the Nomads’ success and leads on DHS Old Boys victory over St Mary’s.The island’s favourite newspaper is in the shops now.

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Three Irish doctors in Air France tragedy died due to pilot error ANTOINETTE KELLY Pilot error has been blamed for the Air France jet disaster that plunged the Airbus 330 aircraft into the Atlantic in 2009, killing all 228 people aboard – including three Irish doctors. France’s Bureau of Investigation and Analysis spent over two years searching for wreckage and flight data recorders from the Airbus 330, which crashed en route to France from Brazil. A new 356-page judicial report to be published next week has reportedly found that speed sensors froze up and failed, but also that the 'captain had failed in his duties' and 'prevented the co-pilot from reacting.'According to Time.com, the new report claims that as the plane’s speed sensors failed and stall warning alarms lit up the cockpit, the pilots failed to act. By the time they realized they had to act they were unsure of what to do. The new report claims that the pilots pushed the plane's nose upward instead of downward during a stall. As the aircraft's computer called out stall warnings, the voice data reveals the pilots didn’t discuss the situation. And when the plane stalled out at 38,000 feet, the failed speed sensors made the pilots’ decision making worse.Robert Soulas, a father of one of the crash victims, was reportedly briefed by French air accident investigators about the findings in their final report. Soulas said that investigators believed the flight director system indicated 'erroneous information' that the plane was diving downward 'and therefore to compensate, the pilot had a tendency to pull on the throttle to make it rise up.'The Airbus A330 was flying from Rio de Janeiro to Paris when it disappeared after it ran into stormy weather around four hours into the flight.At the time of the crash, three young Irish doctors, Jane Deasy, 27, from Rathgar in Dublin, Aisling Butler, 26, from Roscrea in county Tipperary, and Eithne Walls, 28, a former Irish dancing star and member of the famous 'Riverdance' troupe from Ballygowan in County Down, were all flying home from a holiday. According to the Irish Independent, the women graduated together from the same class as doctors in surgery from Trinity College on June 15, 2007.It took several days before the debris from the crash was located in the remote equatorial Atlantic Ocean area and far longer until the wreckage was recovered. The black boxes were finally located by robot submarines after a search that took 23 months and cost about $40 million.Last year, investigators revealed that Captain Marc Dubois was on a break while his two less experienced co-pilots ignored and failed to discuss repeated stall warnings during the three and a half minutes it took the Airbus A330 to plunge into the ocean. The new report has been eagerly awaited by both Airbus and Air France, who dispute who ultimately bears responsibility. All 228 people on board, including the crew, were killed after the Airbus crashed into the Atlantic at a speed of 180 feet a second in the worst air disaster in Air France's history.French magistrates are investigating Air France and Airbus for alleged manslaughter in connection with the crash, notably because of the malfunctioning speed sensors, known as Pitots.The airline replaced the Pitots, manufactured by French company Thales, on its Airbus planes with a newer model after the crash. Victims' families have previously alleged that the involvement of big French corporations such as Airbus and Air France was influencing the progress of the report.

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Cabinet agrees on suicide risk - Reilly Paul Cullen Minister for Health James Reilly has said there are no differences in Cabinet on the issue of allowing the risk of suicide as a reason for terminating a pregnancy. Dr Reilly said ministers were making good progress in advancing legislation for the ABC case, as required by a European Court of Human Rights judgment. There were complex issues involved with 50 different heads in the bill but the matter was progressing satisfactorily. He said he was still on track to publish the bill by Easter. Legislation would be introduced into the Oireachtas during its summer session and the goal was to have it in law before the summer break. “People want to have this issue clarified for women who have to use our health service and doctors and nurses who have to provide treatment,” he said. Asked about the report of the HSE investigation into the death of Savita Halappanavar, Dr Reilly said he still hadn’t received it but expected to do so shortly. He declined to comment until he had received the report. On Croke Park, he acknowledged this was a difficult time for the unions and he expected them to “let their feelings be known”. However, the country was also in a difficult place and had to cut the cost of public services. “We are borrowing €400 million a week to run our country, much of it to fund public pay.” The measures proposed by the Government affected all public sector workers not just one particular group, he stressed. With goodwill, the issues could be resolved. The Minister was speaking this morning at the launch of Lollipop Day to raise money for research into oesophageal cancer. Ireland has one of the highest rates of oesophageal cancer in Europe with around 450 new cases diagnosed each year. Mr Reilly, whose mother died of the disease, said obesity played a huge role in the cancer while tobacco and alcohol were also major risk factors. Oesophageal cancer wasn’t spoken of enough and the survival rates were “poor enough” compared to other cancers. The minister said he wanted to see an increase in survival rates for oesophageal cancer in the same way that survival rates had increased dramatically for testicular cancer. Professor John Reynolds of St James's Hospital said the cure rate of patients presenting with the cancer had increased from 25 per cent to 45 per cent in a decade. Lollipop Day takes place this Friday, running into Saturday.

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River Nidd search for missing man Reported missing: Keith Broadbent Credit: family photo Harrogate police are appealing for help in their search for a father who has been reported missing from home. Keith David Broadbent, aged 61, was last seen by his daughter on Sunday February 3rd driving his blue Fiat Punto along Knaresborough Road, between 5pm and 6pm. Mr Broadbent’s car has since been found in the car park of Conyngham Hall in Knaresborough. Officers are currently conducting extensive searches along the banks of the River Nidd and the area surrounding Conyngham Hall in an effort to trace Mr Broadbent. He is described as white, around 6ft tall, with a medium build, blue eyes and dark brown hair. When he was last seen, Mr Broadbent, was wearing jeans or chinos, a thick oatmeal-coloured jumper and brown shoes. He also wears a wedding ring and a watch with a black strap. Last updated Wed 6 Feb 2013

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Search for boy 'swept away' Sussex Police say they are involved in the search for a 14-year-old boy who is feared to have drowned in rough seas off Newhaven, East Sussex. 28 October 2013 at 8:51am Boy 'swept away' into the sea A 14-year-old boy who got into difficulties in the sea at Newhaven on Sunday afternoon has still not been found. Search and Rescue teams will make a decision this morning on whether to continue their efforts. We witnessed the tragic power of the sea at Newhaven yesterday and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the young lad who is sadly still missing. I don't want to see that repeated." – Superintendent Grenville Wilson Last updated Mon 28 Oct 2013 Storm South East Tens of thousands of rail passengers are facing mass train cancelations every day at Southern because of ongoing sickness by guards. Wednesday afternoon's weather for the east of the region Wednesday afternoon's weather for the west of the region

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Home | News | Reclaiming Cliff DriveSearch Search KCPT Reclaiming Cliff Drive Reclaiming Cliff Drive No Comments Yet - Be The First! Caitlin Cress | The Hale Center for JournalismTWITTER |EMAIL CAITLIN |VIEW CAITLIN'S PROFILE16SHARESFacebookTwitterSubscribe Cliff Drive, a state scenic byway, winds through Kessler Park in the northeast part of Kansas City, Missouri. Hidden in an under-visited area north of downtown, Kessler Park is the namesake park of George Kessler, considered to be the father of Kansas City’s parks and boulevards system. Cliff Drive runs the length of the park, bordered on one side with 40-foot cliffs. Open grassy areas and courses for rock climbing and frisbee golf are available for recreation. Bicyclists and joggers navigate the tight corners of the drive. It sounds like a picturesque scene, but a closer look at Kessler Park reveals issues to be addressed: layers of trash from illegal dumping can be seen over the side of the cliff. Invasive honeysuckle covers much of the park. Cyclists and pedestrians share the winding road with cars. The cumulation of these issues led Brett Shoffner, executive director of the Cliff Drive Corridor Management Committee, to file a petition on change.org, an international, web-based petition platform. Shoffner’s petition asks the city to permanently close the gates to Cliff Drive. The gate closure would prevent automobiles from accessing the road. The petition gained community support very quickly. Andres March, the committee’s technical director, said 1,000 people signed the petition in the first 24 hours. The petition currently has around 1,500 signatures — much higher than Shoffner’s original goal of 100. Shoffner said this road closure could return the park to its original glory. “Originally, when George Kessler designed this… cars weren’t around,” he said. “This used to be a pedestrian and horse and buggy road, so people could come down here and enjoy it without the fear of automobile traffic, and that’s kind of what we’re trying to return it to.” Forest Decker, superintendent of parks for Kansas City, said the city was taking the dumping issue at Kessler Park “very seriously” even before the petition. Shoffner said he wrote the petition, in large part, to instigate a community dialogue. “We want public support,” he said. “We don’t want to do this in a vacuum and just have the city tell people or have (the committee) tell people what’s best for them.” The gates to Cliff Drive are currently closed Friday afternoon through Monday morning, Decker said. The park’s car-free weekends allow Kansas Citians to recreate safely, but do little to stop illegal dumpers. Decker said the city has tried closing the gates during different times of the week with little success. “There’s not a lot of traffic on the drive; it’s not a major thoroughfare,” he said. “Even during the daylight hours, some people still feel comfortable dumping there.” Kessler Park through the years Trash has been accumulating in Kessler Park for hundreds of years, Shoffner said. “We like to call (the area) an archaeological case study in human waste because there’s literally hundreds of years of layers of trash out here,” he said. “Really, before the 1950s, when they instituted regular trash pickup at people’s homes, people just got rid of it. And this is one of the places (where) it was easily out-of-sight, out-of-mind.” Shoffner said that he thinks the majority of today’s dumping is coming from a small group of contractors, and looking at the trash buildup seems to support this: piles of wooden debris, air filters, roofing material and glass from windows have been cleared out by volunteers. Recently, 900 volunteers from the Evangelical Free Church of America’s youth conference worked with the Cliff Drive Corridor Management Committee to clear trash. March said these volunteers removed 3,000 bags of trash, 2,700 tires and multiple truckloads of bulky trash. “But immediately after doing that, the next day after they left, there was more dumping,” he said. Shoffner sees the dumping issues as a perpetual problem of perception: since there is already trash at Kessler Park, others see that as an excuse to dump more. “If people see trash and know that they can dump trash there, it’s going to generate more trash,” he said. Decker said he doesn’t understand the motivation for everyday dumping that happens at Kessler Park. “… Kansas City has free trash removal and free bulky item pickup,” he said. “If you don’t want your washer or your dryer, you can make an appointment and we’ll come to your house and pick it up.” The cycle of dumping off Cliff Drive has led to 5,422 volunteer hours cleaning up Kessler Park in the past 11 months. Shoffner said at least 1,000 of those hours were focused in one small area at the top of E. Lookout Point Drive. During a recent cleanup effort, Bridging the Gap, an environmental nonprofit in Kansas City, Missouri, helped to build a trail down a hill so volunteers could reach trash on the hill’s slope. “… it’s kind of insane to think about, that we’re literally building a trail to go pick up trash right now instead of building a trail for recreational enjoyment,” Shoffner said. Even after that 1,000 hours, trash still remains on the steep slope. “(The trash) was waist-deep on me when I first came through here,” Shoffner said. “It looks a lot better than it used to.” These volunteers have also cleared honeysuckle — another invasive problem along Cliff Drive. The honeysuckle covers much of the drive’s namesake cliffs and is choking the forest above and below the cliffs. The overgrowth is particularly bad now, since the park is lush and green at the end of this mild summer. The abundant overgrowth also conceals some of the trash. When asked why the city would allow so much trash — nearly 3,000 tires, for example — to build up, Decker said that the parks department didn’t initially realize the full extent of the problem. “I don’t think that anyone really knew the extent until we really got down in the weeds, so to speak,” he said. “We started seeing some of this stuff that’s off of the cliff and off the drive that you just really can’t see from the (road)…. It became a higher priority, for sure, at that point.” Part of the city’s effort to deter dumping includes large boulders placed along the drive. The boulders prevent trucks from backing up to the drive’s edge and dumping trash off its sheer face. “That’s obviously worked in those exact spots,” Decker said. “You can’t dump there. But, unfortunately, we have not lined the entire drive with large boulders, and people are very creative and seem to be finding new places to dump outside of areas where we’ve taken preventative measures.” Another preventative measure has been the installation of cameras along Cliff Drive, but Decker said that this has been ineffective. “We don’t have enough cameras to line the several miles of the drive,” he said. Cliff Drive is approximately 4 miles long, according to the city’s website. It is because of these unsuccessful attempts to control the dumping that Shoffner suggests permanently closing the gates in his petition. “We’d like to see it taken care of in a systematic way instead of just picking up the trash time and time again,” he said. In order to find a solution, the committee is working closely with the parks and recreation department. Solutions proposed from both sides include the gate closure and closing just the lane adjacent to the drop-off and making the drive one-way. Because of the drive’s scenic byway status, the road must be open to vehicular traffic. Both Decker and Shoffner said that this requirement is open to interpretation and that they are working with legal teams to see if gate closure is even an option. Shoffner said the Pendleton Heights and Scarritt Renaissance neighborhood associations — both neighborhoods are close to Kessler Park — have voted to support permanent gate closure. In the meantime, Shoffner said the committee will continue its efforts to clean up the park in earnest. “We’re still going to march on with our organizing attempts to get community support for our project and for closing the gates at least temporarily so we can get… control of the illegal dumping,” he said. “Then we can re-clear the cliffs (of honeysuckle), open the forest back up and let people actually enjoy the natural beauty up here instead of seeing a dump.” Video produced with assistance from Lindsey Foat and John McGrath. Timeline by Bridgit Bowden. ← Watch online: Ruckus, August 28 Kansas City Week in Review →

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Body of missing man found at Lake Pueblo State Park Jack Nelson, 43, presumed drowned POSTED: 11:43 AM MDT Aug 09, 2014 UPDATED: 06:44 PM MDT Aug 10, 2014 Small Text Body of Missing Fountain Man Found in Lake Pueblo PUEBLO, Colo. - Rescuers recovered a man's body at Lake Pueblo State Park Saturday morning. Search launched after man disappears into Lake Pueblo Colorado Parks and Wildlife said the victim is Jack Nelson, 43, of Fountain. He went missing in Boggs Creek Cove on Thursday.The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office Dive Team found Nelson's body around 9:30 a.m. Saturday. Parks and Wildlife said rescuers were able to find an area of interest on Friday, but could not go in the water because of poor weather.On Thursday, Nelson, his wife and son were on a small inflatable raft on the west side of Boggs Creek Cove. On Saturday, Nelson's family disputed an earlier account that he, his wife, Christine, and son, Christian, 10, ended up in the water, and that only Christian was wearing a personal floatation device.Family members who were present at the time said the Nelsons all were wearing life vests but that Jack had taken his off because he was hot and wanted to cool off with a swim. However, after entering the water, the wind and lake current strengthened, separating Nelson from the raft, and he was unable to reach it. It's unclear whether fatigue, an object under the water or something else contributed to Nelson's apparent drowning.Nelson's family gathered in support at his home and wanted to set the record straight about him."Someone made a statement that he was just a stupid partier to jump in the lake," said Diane Hernandez, one of Nelson's sisters. "He was not partying and jumping in the lake. He was being Jack."The family said Nelson was a plumber by trade but worked a variety of jobs."We were all actually supposed to go to the lake together," said another sister, Ty Lane. "But it didn't work out. I guess he got us all to the lake anyway."Nelson's family said they'll remember his sense of humor and his influence on his eight siblings and many nieces and nephews.Funeral arrangements are pending, but the family is asking for monetary donations in lieu of flowers. The family said Nelson's wife needs help keeping her home and getting hearing aids for her son. A fund will be established in the name of Nelson's wife, Christine.Nelson's apparent drowning is the first at Lake Pueblo since 2011.

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Your browser does not support iframes. Read a digital copy of the latest edition of the Los Alamos Monitor online. Board of Governor added -A A +A Tuesday, June 19, 2012 at 1:03 pm PopularRelated more Study forecasts disappearance of conifers due to climate change RLUOB team gets award from DOE Violation notice is sent to LANL Regional coalition approves letter Norman J. Pattiz, chairman of the Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (LLNS) and Los Alamos National Security, LLC (LANS), today announced that Steven E. Koonin has been named as an Independent Governor on the LLNS and LANS Boards of Governors. The appointments take effect July 1. Koonin also has been appointed to chair the LANS/LLNS Boards’ Mission Committee. The Mission Committee serves in an advisory role to review current and future national security issues and Laboratory initiatives, capabilities and strategic plans to address these issues. “Steve Koonin is an extraordinary scientist with a long and distinguished history as an adviser on national security matters. He brings distinguished scientific and leadership experience in academia, business and government to the Boards.” Pattiz said. “When the University of California (UC) was the sole manager of the Laboratories, Steve served on a number of the advisory bodies that reviewed the scientific and national security programs at the Laboratories. In that capacity, he advised the UC President and the Lab Directors on strategy and performance. In this regard, we welcome him in his new capacity on the Boards of Governors and as Chair of the Mission Committee.” “I have been associated with these laboratories for more than 40 years,” said Koonin. “I look forward to working in this new role to ensure that they remain vibrant technical enterprises supporting important national missions.” Koonin, a theoretical physicist, is the Director of New York University’s Center for Urban Science and Progress. He has served as Under Secretary for Science in the U.S Department of Energy (DOE), Chief Scientist of BP, and Provost of the California Institute of Technology. He is a member and was a past chair of the JASON Study Group, advising the U.S. government on technical national security matters. He also has served on numerous advisory committees for the DOE, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense, including the Defense Science Board and the Chief of Naval Operations’ Executive Panel. Koonin is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and is a former member of the Trilateral Commission. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors.

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Lowell man accused of assaulting officers Incident triggered by report of accident on 18th StreetBy Robert Mills, [email protected] Updated: 12/24/2012 10:58:19 AM ESTMcCauley TYNGSBORO - A26year-old man who was arrested twice in Tyngsboro last weekend is facing charges he assaulted a 10-year-old girl, drove drunk, assaulted two police officers, and then drove with a suspended license after posting bail. William McCauley, of 35 18th St., Lowell, first came to the attention of police Friday about 6:40 p.m., when Lowell police were called to an accident on 18th Street. A 45-year-old New Hampshire man told police McCauley's pickup truck struck his car on 18th Street, and that McCauley threatened to kill him when he said he was calling police. McCauley pushed the man to the ground, and when the New Hampshire man's 10year-old daughter got out of her father's vehicle, McCauley also pushed her to the ground before fleeing, according to witness statements provided by the 45-year-old man and other witnesses. While Lowell police were taking a report, dispatchers reported a pickup truck matching the description of McCauley's struck another car in the area of Mammoth Road and Varnum Avenue, before fleeing up Pawtucket Boulevard toward Tyngsboro, according to police. Tyngsboro police said they were called for backup about 7:20 p.m., after Lowell police reported the pickup was heading north into their town. Officers located the pickup near the Tyngsboro Bridge, and boxed it in, according to Lt. Richard Howe. Howe said McCauley was combative when arrested, and after being handcuffed, kicked a police officer in the torso and hand. That officer later discovered his finger was broken.Advertisement Inside the passenger side of McCauley's truck, police found what they described as a drunken man with blood on his face and mouth. "This subject was unable to communicate with officers, and was subsequently transported to Lowell General Hospital by Trinity Ambulance," Howe wrote. The passenger is not facing charges. At the Tyngsboro Police Station, McCauley continued to struggle, kicking an officer in the groin area as he was being booked, according to Howe. McCauley was charged with operating under the influence of alcohol (second offense), resisting arrest, failure to stop for police, operating to endanger, marked-lanes violation, and two counts of assault and battery on a police officer. Lowell police plan to charge McCauley with leaving the scene of a propertydamage accident, and two counts of assault and battery. Howe said McCauley posted bail at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Police were called to Duff's garage on Kendall Road in Tyngsboro about 2 p.m., for a report that a man was causing a disturbance. Officers arrived to learn McCauley had gone to Duff's to retrieve property from his pickup, which was towed by Duff's, and drove away in the pickup after gaining access to it. Tyngsboro police located McCauley and his pickup near the Tyngsboro Bridge, and took him into custody again. He was charged with operating motor vehicle after suspension. He later posted bail a second time. McCauley was to be arraigned today in Lowell District Court.Print Email Font ResizeReturn to Top Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)

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Fire near Redding destroys 84 buildings Fire near Redding destroys 84 buildings print August 23, 2012 9:03 p.m. MINERAL . (AP) — Twisted sheets of metal, the hulks of pickup trucks and brick walls were all that was left of dozens of homes once sheltered by green pine and cedar trees in several Northern California communities that were the latest to feel the wrath of massive western wildfires. Thousands of residents of the rural communities just outside Lassen Volcanic National Park were allowed to return home after being forced flee soon after the blaze was ignited by lightning Saturday. They surveyed the damaged Thursday as others in the region prepared to leave. The Ponderosa Fire was 57 percent contained, with full containment expected early next week. But the blaze threatened 900 other homes Thursday as it burned a new front to the south. "All our efforts are focused on keeping the fire out of the park," state fire spokesman Don Camp said Thursday. Sixty-four homes and 20 other buildings have been destroyed, mostly in the Manton area, Camp said. More than 2,500 firefighters were battling the wildfire, which grew to 44 square miles in the hills about 25 miles southeast of Redding. As he monitored helicopters dropping retardant on the rim of the Battle Creek Canyon in nearby Mineral, CalFire Division Chief Scott Lindgren said Thursday the rugged, densely forested land has been challenging for his crews. "The further east we go, the harder it is to stop this fire," Lindgren said. "The problem is, we catch up to it on the top of the canyon at night, but we can't catch up to it at the bottom because of the cliff." Bob Folsom, who works at an area hydroelectric facility, tended the gasoline generator that was keeping his refrigerator running while utility crews worked to replace power lines destroyed by the blaze when it roared through the area last weekend. "I was ready for this day," he said. "I try to be self-sufficient." Folsom and his son never left their home as the fire burned within a half mile of them last weekend, close enough that they heard trees exploding and the flames roaring like a freight train. Over the past 10 years, they had thinned hundreds of trees, dug a pond to store water, and installed hydrants to fill fire hoses. "When it comes through, it's gonna come fast," he said. "You don't have time to cut down trees." Just outside Mineral, Jane Carney, Kelly Strong and Sherill Jenkins said Thursday they were ready to leave their vacation home if necessary. "We'll get out if we're told to get out," Strong said. "That's 'if' we are get told to." Asked why they choose to stay, Jenkins said, "It's beautiful up here." Also in California, a large wildfire in Plumas National Forest continued to expand, helped by gusty winds. The blaze, about 120 miles north of Sacramento, has consumed 99 square miles since it started at the end of July and threatens about 900 homes. It was 40 percent contained Thursday. Wildfires also continued burning elsewhere in the West. In Washington state, fire crews still hoped to fully contain a week-old wildfire that has destroyed 51 homes and 26 outbuildings and damaged at least six other homes, authorities said. The fire, about 75 miles east of Seattle, has caused an estimated $8.3 million in property damage. In central Idaho, firefighters started a burnout operation near the town of Featherville to deny an approaching wildfire the fuel it would need to reach hundreds of homes that were evacuated last weekend. Fire managers said favorable weather conditions allowed them start lighting ignitions late Wednesday to burn and remove vegetation that could have served as fuel for the massive Trinity Ridge Fire, which has charred 164 square miles. As of early Thursday, the operation to create a buffer around the town of Featherville had so far been successful and was expected to continue. The area was evacuated Saturday due to heavy smoke from the Trinity Ridge Fire. The cost of fighting the wildfire is now estimated at $15.6 million.

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State lacks money to finish rest stop renovations Wednesday, August 3, 2011 | 5:02 p.m. CDT DAVID A. LIEB/The Associated Press JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri is about halfway done with a decade-old plan to reduce its number of highway rest stops and improve those that remain, but it's unclear when the state will have enough money to finish the job. The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission heard an update Wednesday on the rest-stop renovation plan, which was developed in 2000 as a way to reduce annual operating costs, spruce up the facilities for tourists and expand the number of parking spots available to commercial truck drivers. At the time, Missouri had 34 rest stops at 19 sites and was spending $4.6 million a year to maintain them. The Department of Transportation set a goal of reducing that to 24 facilities at 16 locations. In many cases, the state targeted for closure the rest stops available to motorists who are about to leave the state and built new, more attractive welcome centers on the other side of the highway for drivers entering Missouri. As of Wednesday, the state had reduced its rest stops to 27 facilities at 17 sites with an annual operating cost of $3.8 million, according to department figures. Many of the closed rest stops have been converted into parking space for trucks. The state has spent about $36 million so far to construct modern replacements for some of the torn-down facilities, said Don Hillis, MoDOT assistant chief engineer. Many of new rest stops — now called welcome centers —have playgrounds and artwork reflecting regional themes. For example, an Interstate 44 facility near Joplin has a mural made of old license plates and the I-44 rest stop near Conway has a theme highlighting its heritage along old Route U.S. 66. An Interstate 35 facility near Eagleville has statues of buffalo on a plain. Hillis said it would cost $96 million to complete 13 facilities at nine sites still remaining on the 2000 renovation plan, but those projects are not currently included in the department's budget.

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