May 09, 2008
House Passes Bill to Make Pennies and Nickels Out of Steel
WASHINGTON -- The House voted for cheaper change Thursday, the kind that would make pennies and nickels worth more than they cost to make and save the country $100 million a year. The unanimous vote advances the legislation to the Senate, but it's prospects are muddled by objections from the Bush administration and some lawmakers. The bill would require the U.S. Mint to switch from a zinc and copper penny, which costs 1.26 cents each to make, to a copper-plated steel penny, which would cost 0.7 cents to make, according to statistics from the Mint and Rep. Zack Space, D-Ohio, one of the measure's sponsors. It also would require nickels, now made of copper and nickel and costing 7.7 cents to make, to be made primarily of steel, which would drop the cost to make the five-cent coin below its face value.
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WASHINGTON -- The House voted for cheaper change Thursday, the kind that would make pennies and nickels worth more than they cost to make and save the country $100 million a year. The unanimous vote advances the legislation to the Senate, but it's prospects are muddled by objections from the Bush administration and some lawmakers. The bill would require the U.S. Mint to switch from a zinc and copper penny, which costs 1.26 cents each to make, to a copper-plated steel penny, which would cost 0.7 cents to make, according to statistics from the Mint and Rep. Zack Space, D-Ohio, one of the measure's sponsors. It also would require nickels, now made of copper and nickel and costing 7.7 cents to make, to be made primarily of steel, which would drop the cost to make the five-cent coin below its face value.
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Posted by Editor at 10:20 AM
Congress Reverses Posse Comitatus Act Changes
JBS.com
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (H.R. 4986), which Congress passed on January 22 and President Bush signed into law on January 28, contained language that effectively repealed revisions to the Posse Comitatus Act made in 2006. The 2006 language made it easier for a president to declare martial law. A wide range of freedom-loving individuals had opposed the expansion of police powers granted to the federal government as part of the ongoing "war on terror.” In an address before the House of Representatives on May 22, 2007, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) cited "the changes made to the Insurrection Act of 1807 and to Posse Comitatus by the Defense Authorization Act of 2007." Because of that act, warned Paul, "martial law can be declared not just for 'insurrection' but also for 'natural disasters, public health reasons, terrorist attacks or incidents' or for the vague reason called 'other conditions.'"
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JBS.com
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (H.R. 4986), which Congress passed on January 22 and President Bush signed into law on January 28, contained language that effectively repealed revisions to the Posse Comitatus Act made in 2006. The 2006 language made it easier for a president to declare martial law. A wide range of freedom-loving individuals had opposed the expansion of police powers granted to the federal government as part of the ongoing "war on terror.” In an address before the House of Representatives on May 22, 2007, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) cited "the changes made to the Insurrection Act of 1807 and to Posse Comitatus by the Defense Authorization Act of 2007." Because of that act, warned Paul, "martial law can be declared not just for 'insurrection' but also for 'natural disasters, public health reasons, terrorist attacks or incidents' or for the vague reason called 'other conditions.'"
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Posted by Editor at 10:20 AM
Police Taser Another Man to Death
An Alton man died Tuesday night after a St. Charles County Sheriff's deputy used a Taser on him. The sheriff's department said it was called to the Piasa Pantry in West Alton around 9 p.m. Tuesday. The man, James Wilson, was having a fight with his sister. When a deputy tried to break up the fight, St. Charles County Sheriff Tom Neer said Wilson started threatening the officer and coming at him. The deputy used his Taser on Wilson, who then lost consciousness.
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An Alton man died Tuesday night after a St. Charles County Sheriff's deputy used a Taser on him. The sheriff's department said it was called to the Piasa Pantry in West Alton around 9 p.m. Tuesday. The man, James Wilson, was having a fight with his sister. When a deputy tried to break up the fight, St. Charles County Sheriff Tom Neer said Wilson started threatening the officer and coming at him. The deputy used his Taser on Wilson, who then lost consciousness.
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Posted by Editor at 09:32 AM
Federal Judge Plans To Review Opinion on CIA Tactics
A federal judge in New York intends next week to review one of the Bush administration's most controversial legal opinions related to detainee interrogations, to decide if it has appropriately been withheld from public view. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein of the Southern District of New York said in an order yesterday that on Monday he intends to review an Aug. 1, 2002, memo on specific CIA interrogation techniques, marking an unusual review outside the executive branch.
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A federal judge in New York intends next week to review one of the Bush administration's most controversial legal opinions related to detainee interrogations, to decide if it has appropriately been withheld from public view. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein of the Southern District of New York said in an order yesterday that on Monday he intends to review an Aug. 1, 2002, memo on specific CIA interrogation techniques, marking an unusual review outside the executive branch.
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Posted by Editor at 09:26 AM
U.S. Urged To Fight Terror On The Internet
A Senate homeland security committee report set for release Thursday details a growing threat from terrorists' use of the Internet as a recruiting and training tool. The report concludes that the U.S. government should consider its own outreach program as a counter to the Web strategies of groups such as al-Qaida. A draft of the staff-generated report obtained by The Courant says that "radicalization is no longer confined to training camps in Afghanistan or other locations far from our shores; it is also occurring right here in the United States." The homeland security committee, led by Sen. Joseph Lieberman, has investigated "the threat of homegrown terrorism" in several hearings since last year.
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A Senate homeland security committee report set for release Thursday details a growing threat from terrorists' use of the Internet as a recruiting and training tool. The report concludes that the U.S. government should consider its own outreach program as a counter to the Web strategies of groups such as al-Qaida. A draft of the staff-generated report obtained by The Courant says that "radicalization is no longer confined to training camps in Afghanistan or other locations far from our shores; it is also occurring right here in the United States." The homeland security committee, led by Sen. Joseph Lieberman, has investigated "the threat of homegrown terrorism" in several hearings since last year.
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Posted by Editor at 09:25 AM
Raw Sewage Being Dumped Into U.S. Rivers
America's aging sewer systems continue to dump human waste into rivers and streams, despite years of fines and penalties targeting publicly owned agencies responsible for sewage overflows, a Gannett News Service analysis shows. The analysis of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data found that since 2003, hundreds of municipal sewer authorities have been fined for violations, including spills that make people sick, threaten local drinking water and kill aquatic animals and plants.
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America's aging sewer systems continue to dump human waste into rivers and streams, despite years of fines and penalties targeting publicly owned agencies responsible for sewage overflows, a Gannett News Service analysis shows. The analysis of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data found that since 2003, hundreds of municipal sewer authorities have been fined for violations, including spills that make people sick, threaten local drinking water and kill aquatic animals and plants.
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Posted by Editor at 09:08 AM
State Caught Off Guard as More Seek Handgun Permits
AUSTIN -- Demand for concealed handgun licenses has risen nearly 40 percent in Texas in a year, an increase being attributed to many factors, even presidential politics. Though the exact cause may be unclear, what's certain is that the spike in applications has caught the Department of Public Safety unprepared. The state is taking a month longer than the 60 days allowed by law to process original applications and 80 days longer on renewals, which are supposed to be handled within 45 days.
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AUSTIN -- Demand for concealed handgun licenses has risen nearly 40 percent in Texas in a year, an increase being attributed to many factors, even presidential politics. Though the exact cause may be unclear, what's certain is that the spike in applications has caught the Department of Public Safety unprepared. The state is taking a month longer than the 60 days allowed by law to process original applications and 80 days longer on renewals, which are supposed to be handled within 45 days.
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Posted by Editor at 09:08 AM
Texas Officials Drafting Plans for FLDS Children
Texas child welfare authorities have begun drafting service plans for the children taken from the Fundamentalist LDS Church's YFZ Ranch. "It's the plan that has to address the permanency," said Mary Walker, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. "Whether or not children will be unified with their parents or whether or not they will remain in foster care." The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has released new numbers on the children. According to the May 2 census, there are 102 infants up to 2 years old. An estimated 99 children are ages 3 to 5; 131 children are 6 to 9 years old; 62 children are 10 to 13; and 42 are 14 to 17. Texas authorities said there are 26 young women who the FLDS claim are adults, but the state believes are children. Two young men turned 18 while in foster care but have elected to stay with family members at a shelter, CPS said.
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Texas child welfare authorities have begun drafting service plans for the children taken from the Fundamentalist LDS Church's YFZ Ranch. "It's the plan that has to address the permanency," said Mary Walker, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. "Whether or not children will be unified with their parents or whether or not they will remain in foster care." The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has released new numbers on the children. According to the May 2 census, there are 102 infants up to 2 years old. An estimated 99 children are ages 3 to 5; 131 children are 6 to 9 years old; 62 children are 10 to 13; and 42 are 14 to 17. Texas authorities said there are 26 young women who the FLDS claim are adults, but the state believes are children. Two young men turned 18 while in foster care but have elected to stay with family members at a shelter, CPS said.
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Posted by Editor at 07:32 AM
State Faces New Headache Over Immunizing Sect Children
A state requirement that children in foster care be inoculated against disease has prompted another round of headaches for lawyers who represent 464 children taken from a polygamist ranch last month. Most children are immunized against diseases including chicken pox, polio, measles and smallpox before they start school. But many, if not most of the children of the Yearning For Zion ranch, owned and operated by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, have not been immunized. All are homeschooled on the 1,700-acre ranch north of Eldorado.
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A state requirement that children in foster care be inoculated against disease has prompted another round of headaches for lawyers who represent 464 children taken from a polygamist ranch last month. Most children are immunized against diseases including chicken pox, polio, measles and smallpox before they start school. But many, if not most of the children of the Yearning For Zion ranch, owned and operated by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, have not been immunized. All are homeschooled on the 1,700-acre ranch north of Eldorado.
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Posted by Editor at 07:32 AM
ACLU weighs in on Texas FLDS raid
The American Civil Liberties Union has weighed in on the raid on a polygamous sect's ranch in Texas, saying that the men, women and children of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints have fundamental rights that may have been compromised. The ACLU noted that the raid on the Yearning For Zion ranch was "prompted by a single allegation of abuse now reported most likely to have been made by someone who never resided at YFZ." Even so, parents have been separated from more than 460 children, have been placed in state custody in shelters throughout Texas, "without individual, adversarial hearings and without particularized evidence that they ever engaged in abuse or were likely to engage in abuse."
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The American Civil Liberties Union has weighed in on the raid on a polygamous sect's ranch in Texas, saying that the men, women and children of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints have fundamental rights that may have been compromised. The ACLU noted that the raid on the Yearning For Zion ranch was "prompted by a single allegation of abuse now reported most likely to have been made by someone who never resided at YFZ." Even so, parents have been separated from more than 460 children, have been placed in state custody in shelters throughout Texas, "without individual, adversarial hearings and without particularized evidence that they ever engaged in abuse or were likely to engage in abuse."
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Posted by Editor at 03:06 AM
Texas AG to Prosecute Criminal Cases from Polygamous Ranch Raid
SAN ANGELO, Texas -- A judge has ordered the Texas attorney general's office to prosecute any future criminal cases connected to last month's raid on a polygamous sect's Eldorado ranch. In a request filed Monday, Tom Green County District Attorney Stephen Lupton asked the state to step in. Jerry Strickland, a spokesman for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, did not know what type of charges the office would consider, but said: "Our office has been in communication with law enforcement as well as prosecutors."
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SAN ANGELO, Texas -- A judge has ordered the Texas attorney general's office to prosecute any future criminal cases connected to last month's raid on a polygamous sect's Eldorado ranch. In a request filed Monday, Tom Green County District Attorney Stephen Lupton asked the state to step in. Jerry Strickland, a spokesman for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, did not know what type of charges the office would consider, but said: "Our office has been in communication with law enforcement as well as prosecutors."
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Posted by Editor at 03:03 AM
Bill Gates says Microsoft going 'independent' way
TOKYO -- Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said Wednesday the company isn't pursuing other deals following the withdrawal of its $47.5 billion takeover bid for Yahoo. He said in Tokyo that the company put "a lot of effort" in the talks with Yahoo and has decided the two should pursue "independent paths." Over the weekend, Microsoft withdrew its 3-month-old unsolicited bid for Yahoo Inc. after seeing the impasse with Yahoo's board over a mutually acceptable sales price. "Now at this point Microsoft is focused on its independent strategy," Gates told reporters at a news conference in Tokyo.
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TOKYO -- Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said Wednesday the company isn't pursuing other deals following the withdrawal of its $47.5 billion takeover bid for Yahoo. He said in Tokyo that the company put "a lot of effort" in the talks with Yahoo and has decided the two should pursue "independent paths." Over the weekend, Microsoft withdrew its 3-month-old unsolicited bid for Yahoo Inc. after seeing the impasse with Yahoo's board over a mutually acceptable sales price. "Now at this point Microsoft is focused on its independent strategy," Gates told reporters at a news conference in Tokyo.
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Posted by Editor at 02:27 AM
May 08, 2008
Pentagon Propaganda Docs Go Online
By John Stauber / Counter Punch
Eight thousand pages of documents related to the Pentagon's illegal propaganda campaign, known as the Pentagon military analyst program, are now online for the world to see, although in a format that makes it impossible to easily search them and therefore difficult to read and dissect. This trove includes the documents pried out of the Pentagon by David Barstow and used as the basis for his stunning investigation that appeared in the New York Times on April 20, 2008. The Pentagon program, which clearly violated US law against covert government propaganda, embedded more than 75 retired military officers — most of them with financial ties to war contractors — into the TV networks as "message surrogates" for the Bush Administration.
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By John Stauber / Counter Punch
Eight thousand pages of documents related to the Pentagon's illegal propaganda campaign, known as the Pentagon military analyst program, are now online for the world to see, although in a format that makes it impossible to easily search them and therefore difficult to read and dissect. This trove includes the documents pried out of the Pentagon by David Barstow and used as the basis for his stunning investigation that appeared in the New York Times on April 20, 2008. The Pentagon program, which clearly violated US law against covert government propaganda, embedded more than 75 retired military officers — most of them with financial ties to war contractors — into the TV networks as "message surrogates" for the Bush Administration.
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Here is the official Pentagon website with the 8,000 pages of documents, the most interesting and revealing of them previously secret and only available to the Pentagon and the New York Times:
http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/milanalysts/
Posted by Editor at 10:16 AM
FBI Backs Off From Secret Order for Data After Lawsuit
The FBI has withdrawn a secret administrative order seeking the name, address and online activity of a patron of the Internet Archive after the San Francisco-based digital library filed suit to block the action. It is one of only three known instances in which the FBI has backed off from such a data demand, known as a "national security letter," or NSL, which is not subject to judicial approval and whose recipient is barred from disclosing the order's existence.
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The FBI has withdrawn a secret administrative order seeking the name, address and online activity of a patron of the Internet Archive after the San Francisco-based digital library filed suit to block the action. It is one of only three known instances in which the FBI has backed off from such a data demand, known as a "national security letter," or NSL, which is not subject to judicial approval and whose recipient is barred from disclosing the order's existence.
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Related:
FBI Targets Internet Archive
The Internet Archive, a project to create a digital library of the web for posterity, successfully fought a secret government Patriot Act order for records about one of its patrons and won the right to make the order public, civil liberties groups announced Wednesday morning. On November 26, 2007, the FBI served a controversial National Security Letter (.pdf) on the Internet Archive's founder Brewster Kahle, asking for records about one of the library's registered users, asking for the user's name, address and activity on the site.
Posted by Editor at 08:50 AM
Mayor Wants Mandatory Recycling
SAN FRANCISCO -- Mayor Gavin Newsom is competitive about many things, garbage included. When the city found out a few weeks ago that it was keeping 70 percent of its disposable waste out of local landfills, he embraced the statistic the way other mayors embrace winning sports teams, improved test scores or declining crime rates. But the city wants more. So Mr. Newsom will soon be sending the city’s Board of Supervisors a proposal that would make the recycling of cans, bottles, paper, yard waste and food scraps mandatory instead of voluntary, on the pain of having garbage pickups suspended.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Mayor Gavin Newsom is competitive about many things, garbage included. When the city found out a few weeks ago that it was keeping 70 percent of its disposable waste out of local landfills, he embraced the statistic the way other mayors embrace winning sports teams, improved test scores or declining crime rates. But the city wants more. So Mr. Newsom will soon be sending the city’s Board of Supervisors a proposal that would make the recycling of cans, bottles, paper, yard waste and food scraps mandatory instead of voluntary, on the pain of having garbage pickups suspended.
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Posted by Editor at 08:25 AM
Man Arrested For Not Using Turn Signal
MELISSA, Tx -- Mark Robinson was driving through downtown Melissa last week when he was pulled over for failing the use his turn signal. But instead of getting a ticket, the officer took the 24-year-old to jail. He was booked, strip searched, and sat for 3 hours with criminals. "People talking about using drugs and shooting heroine. They asked me what I was in there for and I said a turn signal violation," said Robinson. There aren't any warrants out for Robinson. In fact he says he's never been in jail. But he does admit to challenging the officer's questions during the stop. "It’s just unacceptable to me to have my son thrown in jail for such a minor offense," said Mark Robinson, the father.
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MELISSA, Tx -- Mark Robinson was driving through downtown Melissa last week when he was pulled over for failing the use his turn signal. But instead of getting a ticket, the officer took the 24-year-old to jail. He was booked, strip searched, and sat for 3 hours with criminals. "People talking about using drugs and shooting heroine. They asked me what I was in there for and I said a turn signal violation," said Robinson. There aren't any warrants out for Robinson. In fact he says he's never been in jail. But he does admit to challenging the officer's questions during the stop. "It’s just unacceptable to me to have my son thrown in jail for such a minor offense," said Mark Robinson, the father.
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Posted by Editor at 08:23 AM
Federal Officials Testify on Disaster Plans
Two Bush administration Cabinet members yesterday acknowledged gaps in the capability of U.S. hospitals to deal with a mass-casualty terrorist attack or other disaster, but they said a congressional effort to block pending Medicaid cuts will not fix the problem. Testifying before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said lawmakers could target funds at the shortcomings more directly, such as by financing the stockpiling of hospital beds, ventilator units or medicines, if needed.
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Two Bush administration Cabinet members yesterday acknowledged gaps in the capability of U.S. hospitals to deal with a mass-casualty terrorist attack or other disaster, but they said a congressional effort to block pending Medicaid cuts will not fix the problem. Testifying before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said lawmakers could target funds at the shortcomings more directly, such as by financing the stockpiling of hospital beds, ventilator units or medicines, if needed.
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Posted by Editor at 07:28 AM
Continuation of Federal Government Drill In DC
Executive Branch 'Runs' Government From Outside D.C.
Thousands of key federal employees are being whisked from the Washington area by helicopter and car for a three-day test of their ability to run the government from remote locations during a disaster. The exodus, which began yesterday and will continue today, involves the White House and other parts of the executive branch. Congress and the judiciary are not part of the exercise, which is being overseen by the Department of Homeland Security. Since the late 1990s, every federal agency has been required to have a plan to quickly resume operations after a catastrophe. But the response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks raised doubts about many agencies' preparations. This week's "continuity of government" drill is one of the largest by the federal government since 9/11, officials said.
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Executive Branch 'Runs' Government From Outside D.C.
Thousands of key federal employees are being whisked from the Washington area by helicopter and car for a three-day test of their ability to run the government from remote locations during a disaster. The exodus, which began yesterday and will continue today, involves the White House and other parts of the executive branch. Congress and the judiciary are not part of the exercise, which is being overseen by the Department of Homeland Security. Since the late 1990s, every federal agency has been required to have a plan to quickly resume operations after a catastrophe. But the response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks raised doubts about many agencies' preparations. This week's "continuity of government" drill is one of the largest by the federal government since 9/11, officials said.
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Posted by Editor at 05:46 AM
Gambling a Problem for Many U.S. Youth
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Gambling is widespread among U.S. adolescents and young adults ages 14 through 21, a University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions study reveals. Principal investigator John W. Welte said the results of the first national survey of its kind show problem gambling -- described as gambling with three or more negative consequences, such as risking more than intended or stealing money to gamble -- in the past year occurred at a rate of 2.1 percent among youth 14 to 21, or about 750,000 young problem gamblers nationwide.
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BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Gambling is widespread among U.S. adolescents and young adults ages 14 through 21, a University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions study reveals. Principal investigator John W. Welte said the results of the first national survey of its kind show problem gambling -- described as gambling with three or more negative consequences, such as risking more than intended or stealing money to gamble -- in the past year occurred at a rate of 2.1 percent among youth 14 to 21, or about 750,000 young problem gamblers nationwide.
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Posted by Editor at 05:41 AM
May 07, 2008
Global Elite Gather In Washington DC
Luminaries at the Trilateral Commission meeting in Washington expressed confidence that they own all three major presidential candidates, who, despite political posturing, will support sovereignty-surrendering measures such as NAFTA and the "North American Union." "John has always supported free trade, even while campaigning before union leaders," said one. "Hil and Barack are pretending to be unhappy about some things, but that’s merely political posturing. They’re solidly in support." He was referring to Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.).
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Luminaries at the Trilateral Commission meeting in Washington expressed confidence that they own all three major presidential candidates, who, despite political posturing, will support sovereignty-surrendering measures such as NAFTA and the "North American Union." "John has always supported free trade, even while campaigning before union leaders," said one. "Hil and Barack are pretending to be unhappy about some things, but that’s merely political posturing. They’re solidly in support." He was referring to Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.).
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Posted by Editor at 10:36 AM
Americans Negative Opinion of Globalization
Kurt Nimmo / InfoWars
According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, "Americans express increasingly negative opinions toward the World Trade Organization (WTO) and free trade agreements such as NAFTA. In the current survey, a 48% plurality says that free trade agreements are a bad thing for the country, compared with 35% of the public who call them a good thing." Nearly half of those polled say "that free trade agreements are having a negative impact on their own personal financial situation. Nearly half (48%) says that free trade agreements have hurt their personal financial situation, up from 36% in December 2006." Globalization and so-called "free trade" result "in job losses rather than in new jobs. A solid majority (56%) says that free trade makes wages lower in the United States, and half (50%) say it slows the economy."
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Kurt Nimmo / InfoWars
According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, "Americans express increasingly negative opinions toward the World Trade Organization (WTO) and free trade agreements such as NAFTA. In the current survey, a 48% plurality says that free trade agreements are a bad thing for the country, compared with 35% of the public who call them a good thing." Nearly half of those polled say "that free trade agreements are having a negative impact on their own personal financial situation. Nearly half (48%) says that free trade agreements have hurt their personal financial situation, up from 36% in December 2006." Globalization and so-called "free trade" result "in job losses rather than in new jobs. A solid majority (56%) says that free trade makes wages lower in the United States, and half (50%) say it slows the economy."
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Posted by Editor at 10:36 AM
Feds Takeover Fairgrounds For Training
WATERLOO -- Normal operations on the National Cattle Congress fairgrounds have been suspended for most of May as the federal government has leased out virtually the entire facility for a training exercise, NCC general manager Doug Miller said Saturday. Miller said he could release few details. But activity on the NCC fairgrounds was apparent Saturday, as contractors installed massive generators adjacent to many buildings on the NCC fairgrounds and windows of many of the buildings were covered up, blocking views of any work going on inside. A number of large mobile home-size trailers also have taken up residence on the site in the past several weeks.
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WATERLOO -- Normal operations on the National Cattle Congress fairgrounds have been suspended for most of May as the federal government has leased out virtually the entire facility for a training exercise, NCC general manager Doug Miller said Saturday. Miller said he could release few details. But activity on the NCC fairgrounds was apparent Saturday, as contractors installed massive generators adjacent to many buildings on the NCC fairgrounds and windows of many of the buildings were covered up, blocking views of any work going on inside. A number of large mobile home-size trailers also have taken up residence on the site in the past several weeks.
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Posted by Editor at 10:35 AM
Surveillance Cameras to Ticket Cars In Bus Lanes
New York City, New York mayor pushing forward on bus lane photo ticketing. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is lobbying for the authority to install cameras that will issue traffic tickets not to promote safety, but to promote bus service. The devices would monitor lanes on city streets that have been taken away from general purpose use and designated "bus only." Any vehicle straying into one of these lanes -- even momentarily -- would be photographed and the owner would receive a ticket for $115 in the mail weeks later.
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New York City, New York mayor pushing forward on bus lane photo ticketing. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is lobbying for the authority to install cameras that will issue traffic tickets not to promote safety, but to promote bus service. The devices would monitor lanes on city streets that have been taken away from general purpose use and designated "bus only." Any vehicle straying into one of these lanes -- even momentarily -- would be photographed and the owner would receive a ticket for $115 in the mail weeks later.
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Posted by Editor at 10:34 AM
Surveillance Cameras Have Failed to Slash Crime
Massive investment in CCTV cameras to prevent crime in the UK has failed to have a significant impact, despite billions of pounds spent on the new technology, a senior police officer piloting a new database has warned. Only 3% of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV images, despite the fact that Britain has more security cameras than any other country in Europe. The warning comes from the head of the Visual Images, Identifications and Detections Office (Viido) at New Scotland Yard as the force launches a series of initiatives to try to boost conviction rates using CCTV evidence.
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Massive investment in CCTV cameras to prevent crime in the UK has failed to have a significant impact, despite billions of pounds spent on the new technology, a senior police officer piloting a new database has warned. Only 3% of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV images, despite the fact that Britain has more security cameras than any other country in Europe. The warning comes from the head of the Visual Images, Identifications and Detections Office (Viido) at New Scotland Yard as the force launches a series of initiatives to try to boost conviction rates using CCTV evidence.
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Posted by Editor at 10:34 AM
Satellite Indicates Global Cooling
Now it's not just the sunspots that predict a 23-year global cooling. The new Jason oceanographic satellite shows that 2007 was a "cool" La Nina year—but Jason also says something more important is at work: The much larger and more persistent Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) has turned into its cool phase, telling us to expect moderately lower global temperatures until 2030 or so. For the past century at least, global temperatures have tended to mirror the 20-to 30-year warmings and coolings of the north-central Pacific Ocean.
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Now it's not just the sunspots that predict a 23-year global cooling. The new Jason oceanographic satellite shows that 2007 was a "cool" La Nina year—but Jason also says something more important is at work: The much larger and more persistent Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) has turned into its cool phase, telling us to expect moderately lower global temperatures until 2030 or so. For the past century at least, global temperatures have tended to mirror the 20-to 30-year warmings and coolings of the north-central Pacific Ocean.
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Posted by Editor at 08:17 AM
In-Body Wi-Fi to Warn of Heartattacks
The Bluetooth wireless technology that allows people to use a hands-free earpiece while making a mobile telephone call could soon alert the emergency services when someone has a heart attack, Ofcom predicts. The communications regulator said that sensors could be implanted into people at risk of heart attack or diabetic collapse that would allow doctors to monitor them remotely. If the “in-body network” recorded that the person had suddenly collapsed, it would send an alert, via a nearby base station at their home, to a surgery or hospital.
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The Bluetooth wireless technology that allows people to use a hands-free earpiece while making a mobile telephone call could soon alert the emergency services when someone has a heart attack, Ofcom predicts. The communications regulator said that sensors could be implanted into people at risk of heart attack or diabetic collapse that would allow doctors to monitor them remotely. If the “in-body network” recorded that the person had suddenly collapsed, it would send an alert, via a nearby base station at their home, to a surgery or hospital.
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Posted by Editor at 08:16 AM
Caution Urged In Choosing Gene Tests
WASHINGTON -- Everyone's genes spell out a risk for some disease, and a coming anti-discrimination law is about to give genetic testing a boost. But discrimination is just one hurdle. The bigger quandary: Doctors don't yet know how many of the genetic tests being pushed for dozens of conditions are truly useful — and how many are misleading at best. "Some of these tests are complete rubbish," warns Dr. Howard McLeod, a personalized medicine specialist at the University of North Carolina. "The big challenge for a consumer is figuring out which data is real or not without having to go to medical school."
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WASHINGTON -- Everyone's genes spell out a risk for some disease, and a coming anti-discrimination law is about to give genetic testing a boost. But discrimination is just one hurdle. The bigger quandary: Doctors don't yet know how many of the genetic tests being pushed for dozens of conditions are truly useful — and how many are misleading at best. "Some of these tests are complete rubbish," warns Dr. Howard McLeod, a personalized medicine specialist at the University of North Carolina. "The big challenge for a consumer is figuring out which data is real or not without having to go to medical school."
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Posted by Editor at 08:14 AM
Feds: No Duty To Protect Public From Anthrax
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The federal government and a private laboratory say they have no duty under Florida law to protect the public from anthrax or other lethal materials. Their lawyers made that argument yesterday to the Florida Supreme Court. The justices will rule on that issue as part of a lawsuit over the anthrax death of a photo editor for a supermarket tabloid publisher.
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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The federal government and a private laboratory say they have no duty under Florida law to protect the public from anthrax or other lethal materials. Their lawyers made that argument yesterday to the Florida Supreme Court. The justices will rule on that issue as part of a lawsuit over the anthrax death of a photo editor for a supermarket tabloid publisher.
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Posted by Editor at 08:11 AM
TV Video Shows Philly Officers Kicking, Hitting 3 Suspects
PHILADELPHIA -- A half-dozen police officers kicked and beat three men pulled from a car during a traffic stop as a TV helicopter taped the confrontation. The video, shot by WTXF-TV, shows three police cars stopping a car Monday, two days after a city officer was shot to death responding to a bank robbery. The tape shows about a dozen officers gathering around the vehicle. About a half-dozen officers hold two of the men on the ground. Both are kicked repeatedly, while one is seen being punched; one also appears to be struck with a baton.
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PHILADELPHIA -- A half-dozen police officers kicked and beat three men pulled from a car during a traffic stop as a TV helicopter taped the confrontation. The video, shot by WTXF-TV, shows three police cars stopping a car Monday, two days after a city officer was shot to death responding to a bank robbery. The tape shows about a dozen officers gathering around the vehicle. About a half-dozen officers hold two of the men on the ground. Both are kicked repeatedly, while one is seen being punched; one also appears to be struck with a baton.
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Posted by Editor at 08:07 AM
Amazon Suing NY State Over Sales Tax Law
LOS ANGELES -- Amazon.com Inc has sued the state of New York, challenging a new statute requiring Internet retailers based elsewhere to collect New York sales taxes. Amazon, the world's largest Internet retailer, said in a complaint filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York on April 25 that the new law, passed by the state legislature in early April, was unconstitutional, vague and overly broad.
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LOS ANGELES -- Amazon.com Inc has sued the state of New York, challenging a new statute requiring Internet retailers based elsewhere to collect New York sales taxes. Amazon, the world's largest Internet retailer, said in a complaint filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York on April 25 that the new law, passed by the state legislature in early April, was unconstitutional, vague and overly broad.
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Posted by Editor at 08:06 AM
Prison Protected by Bears, Gators and Guards
NEW ORLEANS -- The way the warden sees it, the more than 400-pound black bear living in the middle of the sprawling Louisiana State Penitentiary is an extra layer of security. "I love that bear being right where it is," Warden Burl Cain said Monday. "I tell you what, none of our inmates are going to try to get out after dark and wander around when they might run into a big old bear. It's like having another guard at no cost to the taxpayer."
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NEW ORLEANS -- The way the warden sees it, the more than 400-pound black bear living in the middle of the sprawling Louisiana State Penitentiary is an extra layer of security. "I love that bear being right where it is," Warden Burl Cain said Monday. "I tell you what, none of our inmates are going to try to get out after dark and wander around when they might run into a big old bear. It's like having another guard at no cost to the taxpayer."
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Posted by Editor at 12:50 AM
May 06, 2008
U.S. Government Wiretaps Up 20%
A US court report on wiretapping shows that the phenomenon is up by 20 per cent on last year, reaching its highest ever level, with not even a single surveillance application turned down in the whole of 2007. The report notes that last year alone, 2,208 wiretaps were authorised by the courts, most having been requested by US state authorities, with only 457 being requested by Federal Agencies. This is significantly higher than the 1839 requested in 2006.
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A US court report on wiretapping shows that the phenomenon is up by 20 per cent on last year, reaching its highest ever level, with not even a single surveillance application turned down in the whole of 2007. The report notes that last year alone, 2,208 wiretaps were authorised by the courts, most having been requested by US state authorities, with only 457 being requested by Federal Agencies. This is significantly higher than the 1839 requested in 2006.
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Posted by Editor at 10:33 AM
Chertoff: Stop Complaining About the Fascist Control Grid
Kurt Nimmo / Infowars
It makes sense Michael Chertoff would make his latest anti-liberty comments while addressing the Heritage Foundation. After all, the "conservative" foundation - read, neocon foundation - is funded by the beer magnate Joe Coors and CIA operative Richard Mellon Scaife, heir of the Mellon industrial and banking fortune. Heritage was on the ball after 9/11, as it created the Homeland Defense Project, a "task force" cranking out "recommendations" for Chertoff’s police state. "At a speech before the Heritage Foundation this week, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. needs to have a 'nonpoliticized, serious discussion' while writing new laws to define the best way to combat terrorism," reports the HAI website. Translation: Chertoff does not want "serious discussion" on the political aspects of further denigration of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
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Kurt Nimmo / Infowars
It makes sense Michael Chertoff would make his latest anti-liberty comments while addressing the Heritage Foundation. After all, the "conservative" foundation - read, neocon foundation - is funded by the beer magnate Joe Coors and CIA operative Richard Mellon Scaife, heir of the Mellon industrial and banking fortune. Heritage was on the ball after 9/11, as it created the Homeland Defense Project, a "task force" cranking out "recommendations" for Chertoff’s police state. "At a speech before the Heritage Foundation this week, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. needs to have a 'nonpoliticized, serious discussion' while writing new laws to define the best way to combat terrorism," reports the HAI website. Translation: Chertoff does not want "serious discussion" on the political aspects of further denigration of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
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Posted by Editor at 10:32 AM
Homeland Security Update: Chertoff Says New Terror Laws Needed
At a speech before the Heritage Foundation this week, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. needs to have a "nonpoliticized, serious discussion" while writing new laws to define the best way to combat terrorism. Chertoff said that once laws are written, the public should not second-guess government actions and claim that federal officials are overstepping their authority. He decried critics who make such accusations, despite the widespread pubic calls after the September 11, 2001 attacks for the U.S. government to do more to protect the country. Chertoff further said U.S. society needs to come to a determination as to what are acceptable authorities for the U.S. government versus what violates people’s rights.
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At a speech before the Heritage Foundation this week, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. needs to have a "nonpoliticized, serious discussion" while writing new laws to define the best way to combat terrorism. Chertoff said that once laws are written, the public should not second-guess government actions and claim that federal officials are overstepping their authority. He decried critics who make such accusations, despite the widespread pubic calls after the September 11, 2001 attacks for the U.S. government to do more to protect the country. Chertoff further said U.S. society needs to come to a determination as to what are acceptable authorities for the U.S. government versus what violates people’s rights.
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Posted by Editor at 10:32 AM
White House Plans Proactive Cyber-Security Role for Spy Agencies
America's spy agencies for the first time would be tasked with gathering intelligence on threats to the nation's computer networks under a policy that could be detailed by the White House as early as next week, a senior administration official said. Speaking at a security conference in Washington, the official said the Bush administration wants to harness the intelligence community's offensive capabilities in defense of government and civilian computer systems.
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America's spy agencies for the first time would be tasked with gathering intelligence on threats to the nation's computer networks under a policy that could be detailed by the White House as early as next week, a senior administration official said. Speaking at a security conference in Washington, the official said the Bush administration wants to harness the intelligence community's offensive capabilities in defense of government and civilian computer systems.
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Posted by Editor at 09:07 AM
Judge Orders Removal of Taser Death from Medical Examiner's Reports
A Summit County Common Pleas judge ordered the county medical examiner to delete any reference that Tasers contributed to the deaths of three Ohio men. All three men were in an 'agitated' state and 'on drugs' when police officers shot them with Tasers, and the judge ordered their deaths be ruled 'accidental' also that any reference to "homicide or "electrical pulse stimulation" should be deleted from death certificates and autopsy reports." Five sheriff's deputies had been indicted on charges related to the death of one of the men, who also had a history of mental illness. The judge further ordered that man's death be ruled as "undetermined" and to "delete any references to homicide and the death possibly being caused by asphyxia, beatings or other factors."
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A Summit County Common Pleas judge ordered the county medical examiner to delete any reference that Tasers contributed to the deaths of three Ohio men. All three men were in an 'agitated' state and 'on drugs' when police officers shot them with Tasers, and the judge ordered their deaths be ruled 'accidental' also that any reference to "homicide or "electrical pulse stimulation" should be deleted from death certificates and autopsy reports." Five sheriff's deputies had been indicted on charges related to the death of one of the men, who also had a history of mental illness. The judge further ordered that man's death be ruled as "undetermined" and to "delete any references to homicide and the death possibly being caused by asphyxia, beatings or other factors."
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Posted by Editor at 09:04 AM
Federal Agents Raid Wrong Home In Search For Drugs
OPA-LOCKA, Fla. -- Federal agents on the hunt for criminals on Thursday raided the wrong house while searching for drugs. Police and federal agents raided 50 marijuana grow houses around Florida on Thursday, calling it "Operation D-Day." They seized $7 million worth of pot plants, but they also kicked in the door of Noel Llorente's Opa-locka home and found nothing but bewildered homeowners. "I was frightened for my husband because they threw him on the ground," Llorente's wife said. "I was scared.
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OPA-LOCKA, Fla. -- Federal agents on the hunt for criminals on Thursday raided the wrong house while searching for drugs. Police and federal agents raided 50 marijuana grow houses around Florida on Thursday, calling it "Operation D-Day." They seized $7 million worth of pot plants, but they also kicked in the door of Noel Llorente's Opa-locka home and found nothing but bewildered homeowners. "I was frightened for my husband because they threw him on the ground," Llorente's wife said. "I was scared.
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Posted by Editor at 08:57 AM
Yahoo CEO Facing Possible Rebellion After Spurning Microsoft
SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo Inc. Chief Executive Jerry Yang is convinced that the company he started in a Silicon Valley trailer 14 years ago is worth more than the $47.5 billion that Microsoft Corp. had offered for the Internet pioneer. Now he may only have a few months to convince Wall Street that his rebuff of Microsoft's takeover bid was a smart move - and if he can't, analysts won't be surprised if Yang is either replaced as CEO or forced to consider accepting a lower offer if Microsoft comes knocking at his door again.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo Inc. Chief Executive Jerry Yang is convinced that the company he started in a Silicon Valley trailer 14 years ago is worth more than the $47.5 billion that Microsoft Corp. had offered for the Internet pioneer. Now he may only have a few months to convince Wall Street that his rebuff of Microsoft's takeover bid was a smart move - and if he can't, analysts won't be surprised if Yang is either replaced as CEO or forced to consider accepting a lower offer if Microsoft comes knocking at his door again.
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Posted by Editor at 06:44 AM
Google Ends Microsoft's Yahoo Search
Microsoft and Yahoo were pushed to the brink of a multibillion-dollar marriage and then to a sudden breakup this weekend by the same player. It was Google, in the odd dual role of both unwitting matchmaker and self-interested spoiler. A combined Microsoft-Yahoo would create a powerful competitor, and Google early on indicated that it would fight the merger on antitrust grounds in Washington and Brussels. But Google played a part in killing the deal, for now at least, by acting more as friend than foe. It offered to let Yahoo use its more sophisticated search advertising technology, which by some estimates would have meant $1 billion in additional cash flow a year for Yahoo. The partnership would also bring Google more revenue.
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Microsoft and Yahoo were pushed to the brink of a multibillion-dollar marriage and then to a sudden breakup this weekend by the same player. It was Google, in the odd dual role of both unwitting matchmaker and self-interested spoiler. A combined Microsoft-Yahoo would create a powerful competitor, and Google early on indicated that it would fight the merger on antitrust grounds in Washington and Brussels. But Google played a part in killing the deal, for now at least, by acting more as friend than foe. It offered to let Yahoo use its more sophisticated search advertising technology, which by some estimates would have meant $1 billion in additional cash flow a year for Yahoo. The partnership would also bring Google more revenue.
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Posted by Editor at 06:18 AM
Civil War Cannonball Kills Virginia Relic Collector
CHESTER, Va. -- Like many boys in the South, Sam White got hooked on the Civil War early, digging up rusting bullets and military buttons in the battle-scarred earth of his hometown. As an adult, he crisscrossed the Virginia countryside in search of wartime relics -- weapons, battle flags, even artillery shells buried in the red clay. He sometimes put on diving gear to feel for treasures hidden in the black muck of river bottoms. But in February, White's hobby cost him his life: A cannonball he was restoring exploded, killing him in his driveway.
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CHESTER, Va. -- Like many boys in the South, Sam White got hooked on the Civil War early, digging up rusting bullets and military buttons in the battle-scarred earth of his hometown. As an adult, he crisscrossed the Virginia countryside in search of wartime relics -- weapons, battle flags, even artillery shells buried in the red clay. He sometimes put on diving gear to feel for treasures hidden in the black muck of river bottoms. But in February, White's hobby cost him his life: A cannonball he was restoring exploded, killing him in his driveway.
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Posted by Editor at 05:02 AM
May 05, 2008
Judge: Federal Government Can Be Sued Over Katrina Flooding
NEW ORLEANS -- The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can be held liable for flood damage caused by a "hurricane highway," a navigation channel that is believed to have funneled Hurricane Katrina's storm surge into the city, a federal judge ruled Friday. The Corps of Engineers had argued that it was immune from liability because the channel is part of New Orleans' flood control system. The law says the federal government cannot be sued if something goes wrong with a flood control project such as a levee, reservoir or dam. Judge Stanwood Duval dismissed that argument, saying the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, or MRGO, was clearly a ship channel and not a flood control project.
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NEW ORLEANS -- The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can be held liable for flood damage caused by a "hurricane highway," a navigation channel that is believed to have funneled Hurricane Katrina's storm surge into the city, a federal judge ruled Friday. The Corps of Engineers had argued that it was immune from liability because the channel is part of New Orleans' flood control system. The law says the federal government cannot be sued if something goes wrong with a flood control project such as a levee, reservoir or dam. Judge Stanwood Duval dismissed that argument, saying the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, or MRGO, was clearly a ship channel and not a flood control project.
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Posted by Editor at 07:31 AM
Spy Grid Part of Consumer Technology
By Ethan Allen / Rogue Government
Tech savy proponents might think it's great, meanwhile skeptics and naysayers still deny its existence, but microphones and internal listening devices are being installed in hi-tech hardware, and have been for several years. Motorola released a fact sheet concerning their next generation HD cable boxes and broadband devices.
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By Ethan Allen / Rogue Government
Tech savy proponents might think it's great, meanwhile skeptics and naysayers still deny its existence, but microphones and internal listening devices are being installed in hi-tech hardware, and have been for several years. Motorola released a fact sheet concerning their next generation HD cable boxes and broadband devices.
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Posted by Editor at 07:31 AM
IBM Joins Lockheed On FBI Identification System
IBM Corp. and Lockheed Martin Corp. have agreed to work together on the $1 billion contract to develop and maintain the FBI’s Next Generation Identification (NGI) system, IBM said today. Federal, state and local authorities will use the new multimodal biometrics system. Lockheed Martin won the 10-year contract in February, but IBM lodged a protest with the Government Accountability Office and work was held up. Big Blue’s announcement that it is joining Lockheed Martin’s team as a subcontractor made no mention of the protest.
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IBM Corp. and Lockheed Martin Corp. have agreed to work together on the $1 billion contract to develop and maintain the FBI’s Next Generation Identification (NGI) system, IBM said today. Federal, state and local authorities will use the new multimodal biometrics system. Lockheed Martin won the 10-year contract in February, but IBM lodged a protest with the Government Accountability Office and work was held up. Big Blue’s announcement that it is joining Lockheed Martin’s team as a subcontractor made no mention of the protest.
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Posted by Editor at 07:31 AM
Homeland Security to Test High-Tech Buoys
The federal government is preparing to test high-tech buoys adapted from Cold War-era Navy technology that could act as an offshore early warning system against a terrorist attack by sea. Finding boats that aren't supposed to be heading for U.S. shores is a difficult task in vast, sometimes dangerous seas. Much of the surveillance is done by aircraft and satellites, which is very expensive work, Homeland Security spokeswoman Amy Kudwa says. The department hopes contractors can create inexpensive buoys that can withstand rough water and don't require any maintenance for at least a year.
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The federal government is preparing to test high-tech buoys adapted from Cold War-era Navy technology that could act as an offshore early warning system against a terrorist attack by sea. Finding boats that aren't supposed to be heading for U.S. shores is a difficult task in vast, sometimes dangerous seas. Much of the surveillance is done by aircraft and satellites, which is very expensive work, Homeland Security spokeswoman Amy Kudwa says. The department hopes contractors can create inexpensive buoys that can withstand rough water and don't require any maintenance for at least a year.
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Posted by Editor at 07:30 AM
Pawn Shop Owner Sued for Selling Gun Used in Crime
The firearms dealer who sold Sulejman Talovic a pistol-grip shotgun should have known the 18-year-old planned to use the weapon for murder, a survivor of the deadly Trolley Square shootings claims in a lawsuit. Stacy Hanson is suing Nevada-based Rocky Mountain Enterprises and a pawn shop chain it owns, Sportsman's Fastcash, for emotional and physical damages he and his wife incurred after the Feb. 12, 2007, shootings, according to documents filed in 3rd District Court on Thursday.
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The firearms dealer who sold Sulejman Talovic a pistol-grip shotgun should have known the 18-year-old planned to use the weapon for murder, a survivor of the deadly Trolley Square shootings claims in a lawsuit. Stacy Hanson is suing Nevada-based Rocky Mountain Enterprises and a pawn shop chain it owns, Sportsman's Fastcash, for emotional and physical damages he and his wife incurred after the Feb. 12, 2007, shootings, according to documents filed in 3rd District Court on Thursday.
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Posted by Editor at 06:05 AM
Bills Seek Punishment for Use, Display of Fake Weapons
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Concerns that realistic-looking toy weapons are confusing police and threatening safety have led 15 states to try going beyond gun control and cracking down on fake firearms. Officer Micheal Hoover knows a fair amount about guns as a sniper instructor for a Tennessee SWAT team. He recalls the night two years ago when a car pulled up beside him on a highway and the passenger waved what looked like an Uzi.
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Concerns that realistic-looking toy weapons are confusing police and threatening safety have led 15 states to try going beyond gun control and cracking down on fake firearms. Officer Micheal Hoover knows a fair amount about guns as a sniper instructor for a Tennessee SWAT team. He recalls the night two years ago when a car pulled up beside him on a highway and the passenger waved what looked like an Uzi.
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Posted by Editor at 12:55 AM
Planes and Purgatory: A Day at the Airport
By Garrison Keillor
A cabdriver picked me up outside the Waffle House in Little Rock last Sunday and said so sweetly, "I hope you enjoyed your breakfast" - elongating the "joy" slightly and slurring the k in "breakfast" - and I said yes, but honestly, I don't really associate breakfast with enjoyment. It's chow. It's a standardized meal meant to fortify you for the day's maneuvers and you square your shoulders and sit down and eat it. This particular breakfast was grits, eggs over easy, country ham, and biscuits with gravy, a meal that will fuel you right through five o'clock, but enjoyment?
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By Garrison Keillor
A cabdriver picked me up outside the Waffle House in Little Rock last Sunday and said so sweetly, "I hope you enjoyed your breakfast" - elongating the "joy" slightly and slurring the k in "breakfast" - and I said yes, but honestly, I don't really associate breakfast with enjoyment. It's chow. It's a standardized meal meant to fortify you for the day's maneuvers and you square your shoulders and sit down and eat it. This particular breakfast was grits, eggs over easy, country ham, and biscuits with gravy, a meal that will fuel you right through five o'clock, but enjoyment?
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Posted by Editor at 12:54 AM
Shark Attacks Blamed On Global Warming
Three decades have passed since the movie Jaws sent terrified bathers scrambling out of the ocean. But as any beach lifeguard knows, there's still nothing like a gory shark attack to stoke public hysteria and paranoia. Two deaths in the waters off California and Mexico last week and a spate of shark-inflicted injuries to surfers off Florida's Atlantic coast have left beachgoers seeking an explanation for a sudden surge in the number of strikes.
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Three decades have passed since the movie Jaws sent terrified bathers scrambling out of the ocean. But as any beach lifeguard knows, there's still nothing like a gory shark attack to stoke public hysteria and paranoia. Two deaths in the waters off California and Mexico last week and a spate of shark-inflicted injuries to surfers off Florida's Atlantic coast have left beachgoers seeking an explanation for a sudden surge in the number of strikes.
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Posted by Editor at 12:54 AM
Microsoft drops pursuit of Yahoo, looks ahead
SAN FRANCISCO -- With its quest for Yahoo abruptly over, Microsoft must now pursue a Plan B to compete with Google for Internet advertising dollars. Microsoft dropped its blockbuster bid to acquire Yahoo late Saturday, after the two tech titans could not agree on a price. The software giant withdrew its offer hours after it sweetened the bid to $33 a share, or about $47.5 billion, at a meeting in Seattle between Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang, said people with knowledge of the talks who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the discussions.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- With its quest for Yahoo abruptly over, Microsoft must now pursue a Plan B to compete with Google for Internet advertising dollars. Microsoft dropped its blockbuster bid to acquire Yahoo late Saturday, after the two tech titans could not agree on a price. The software giant withdrew its offer hours after it sweetened the bid to $33 a share, or about $47.5 billion, at a meeting in Seattle between Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang, said people with knowledge of the talks who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the discussions.
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Posted by Editor at 12:53 AM
Yahoo Stock Set To Plunge After Microsoft Withdrawn
SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo Inc. Chief Executive Jerry Yang has gotten what he wanted: a chance to prove his company is worth more than the $47.5 billion that Microsoft Corp. offered to buy the Internet pioneer. It will be a daunting challenge, as Yang will be pointedly reminded Monday when investors are expected to show how little they think of Yahoo without a takeover bid on the table. Faced with resistance from Yang and the rest of Yahoo's board, Microsoft withdrew its offer over the weekend.
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo Inc. Chief Executive Jerry Yang has gotten what he wanted: a chance to prove his company is worth more than the $47.5 billion that Microsoft Corp. offered to buy the Internet pioneer. It will be a daunting challenge, as Yang will be pointedly reminded Monday when investors are expected to show how little they think of Yahoo without a takeover bid on the table. Faced with resistance from Yang and the rest of Yahoo's board, Microsoft withdrew its offer over the weekend.
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Posted by Editor at 12:53 AM
Yahoo Under Pressure After Deal Collapse
An expected realignment of the consumer internet sector was thrown into doubt over the weekend after Microsoft's surprise abandonment of its $46.5bn offer for Yahoo. The move is set to put pressure on senior executives of both companies, as one of Yahoo’s largest shareholders criticised both sides for failing to agree a deal that would have left Yahoo shareholders with a big gain and given Microsoft a boost in its attempt to compete with Google.
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An expected realignment of the consumer internet sector was thrown into doubt over the weekend after Microsoft's surprise abandonment of its $46.5bn offer for Yahoo. The move is set to put pressure on senior executives of both companies, as one of Yahoo’s largest shareholders criticised both sides for failing to agree a deal that would have left Yahoo shareholders with a big gain and given Microsoft a boost in its attempt to compete with Google.
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Posted by Editor at 12:52 AM
May 03, 2008
After Scandal, Students Are Leaving Oral Roberts University
TULSA, Okla. -- As Oral Roberts University prepares to hand out diplomas to its Class of 2008, Anna Siebring, a junior, will be mailing out applications to transfer to another school. Siebring, a government major, is among many students having second thoughts about staying at Oral Roberts after six months of scandal at the evangelical Christian university. She and others fear the furor will reduce the value of any degree they earn there. Some graduates worry that they will have to try twice as hard to market themselves to potential employers after Saturday's commencement. "The reputation of the school means a lot," Siebring said. "I want to be proud of the school that I went to, but I could definitely not say that about the school right now."
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TULSA, Okla. -- As Oral Roberts University prepares to hand out diplomas to its Class of 2008, Anna Siebring, a junior, will be mailing out applications to transfer to another school. Siebring, a government major, is among many students having second thoughts about staying at Oral Roberts after six months of scandal at the evangelical Christian university. She and others fear the furor will reduce the value of any degree they earn there. Some graduates worry that they will have to try twice as hard to market themselves to potential employers after Saturday's commencement. "The reputation of the school means a lot," Siebring said. "I want to be proud of the school that I went to, but I could definitely not say that about the school right now."
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Posted by Editor at 10:44 PM
Calif. Man Accused of $25 Million Scam Targeting Christians Nationwide
SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Federal authorities arrested a man accused of running an investment scheme that netted more than $25 million by targeting Christian investors nationwide. Jon G. Ervin, 61, of Mission Viejo, was arrested Friday on a charge of wire fraud. He later appeared in federal court, where he was ordered held on $1 million bail. Ervin's public defender, Leon Peterson, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment. Ervin was named Thursday in a criminal complaint filed in federal court. The same day, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed lawsuits against Ervin and his company, Safevest LLC, and obtained federal orders freezing their assets.
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SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Federal authorities arrested a man accused of running an investment scheme that netted more than $25 million by targeting Christian investors nationwide. Jon G. Ervin, 61, of Mission Viejo, was arrested Friday on a charge of wire fraud. He later appeared in federal court, where he was ordered held on $1 million bail. Ervin's public defender, Leon Peterson, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment. Ervin was named Thursday in a criminal complaint filed in federal court. The same day, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed lawsuits against Ervin and his company, Safevest LLC, and obtained federal orders freezing their assets.
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Posted by Editor at 10:44 PM
Ban On Coach Bowing His Head for Prayer Challenged
Members of the legal team for the Rutherford Institute have asked the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals to re-hear a case in which school officials ordered a football coach not to bow his head while his players voluntarily took part in a pre-game prayer. "If this ruling is allowed to stand, it will mean that high school teachers across the United States will have no free speech or academic freedom rights at all," said John W. Whitehead, president of the organization, in a statement.
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Members of the legal team for the Rutherford Institute have asked the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals to re-hear a case in which school officials ordered a football coach not to bow his head while his players voluntarily took part in a pre-game prayer. "If this ruling is allowed to stand, it will mean that high school teachers across the United States will have no free speech or academic freedom rights at all," said John W. Whitehead, president of the organization, in a statement.
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Posted by Editor at 10:43 PM
Stanford Legal Group Defends 'Expelled' Against Lawsuit
The Fair Use Project of Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society announced Thursday that it would serve as legal counsel for the producers of "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" in their right to use a clip of John Lennon’s song "Imagine" in its pro-intelligent design documentary. A lawsuit filed last week in a New York District Court by John Lennon’ sons and widow, Yoko Ono, alongside EMI Blackwood Music is seeking unspecified damages and a halt on all screenings of the film for what they claim is an illegal appropriation of the hit song.
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The Fair Use Project of Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society announced Thursday that it would serve as legal counsel for the producers of "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" in their right to use a clip of John Lennon’s song "Imagine" in its pro-intelligent design documentary. A lawsuit filed last week in a New York District Court by John Lennon’ sons and widow, Yoko Ono, alongside EMI Blackwood Music is seeking unspecified damages and a halt on all screenings of the film for what they claim is an illegal appropriation of the hit song.
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Posted by Editor at 10:43 PM
City Commission Resumes Clergy-Led Prayers at Meetings
DEERFIELD BEACH -- Under heavy political pressure, city commissioners have resumed clergy-led prayer during public meetings and will partner with the conservative Liberty Counsel, which will defend the city free of charge if lawsuits challenge the decision. Several years of debate about clergy-led prayers, when Jesus Christ has been invoked, accelerated in September after Mayor Al Capellini, with commission approval, began reading nonsectarian texts to begin bimonthly meetings. The new format was not adequate for some religious leaders and residents, who demanded a return to a practice begun in the city 82 years ago.
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DEERFIELD BEACH -- Under heavy political pressure, city commissioners have resumed clergy-led prayer during public meetings and will partner with the conservative Liberty Counsel, which will defend the city free of charge if lawsuits challenge the decision. Several years of debate about clergy-led prayers, when Jesus Christ has been invoked, accelerated in September after Mayor Al Capellini, with commission approval, began reading nonsectarian texts to begin bimonthly meetings. The new format was not adequate for some religious leaders and residents, who demanded a return to a practice begun in the city 82 years ago.
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Posted by Editor at 03:21 PM
Atheist Officials in Texas Demand Humanistic Faith In Darwinism
The state of Texas has decided that a graduate school with a faculty sporting Ph.Ds from UCLA, Penn State, the University of Montana, Colorado State, Case Western and Indiana University, with a few lowly Ed.D. degrees thrown it, isn't qualified to grant master's degrees because it teaches students to evaluate thoroughly the pluses – and minuses – of evolution and creation. The verdict came just a week ago from the Texas Higher Education Consulting Board, which rejected an application from the Institute for Creation Research Graduate School for a Certificate of Authority to grant degrees.
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The state of Texas has decided that a graduate school with a faculty sporting Ph.Ds from UCLA, Penn State, the University of Montana, Colorado State, Case Western and Indiana University, with a few lowly Ed.D. degrees thrown it, isn't qualified to grant master's degrees because it teaches students to evaluate thoroughly the pluses – and minuses – of evolution and creation. The verdict came just a week ago from the Texas Higher Education Consulting Board, which rejected an application from the Institute for Creation Research Graduate School for a Certificate of Authority to grant degrees.
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Posted by Editor at 03:17 PM
School Says Transportation OK for Student Clubs...Unless They're Christian
LAKE CHARLES, La. -- Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit and a request for a temporary restraining order against Calcasieu Parish Public Schools Thursday. School officials prohibited students of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes club from using school buses to attend an event even though the school does not prohibit other clubs from using the buses. "Christian student groups shouldn't be discriminated against because of their beliefs," said ADF Senior Counsel David Cortman. "All student groups have the same First Amendment rights, and schools cannot deny benefits to one club while granting the same benefits to another."
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LAKE CHARLES, La. -- Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit and a request for a temporary restraining order against Calcasieu Parish Public Schools Thursday. School officials prohibited students of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes club from using school buses to attend an event even though the school does not prohibit other clubs from using the buses. "Christian student groups shouldn't be discriminated against because of their beliefs," said ADF Senior Counsel David Cortman. "All student groups have the same First Amendment rights, and schools cannot deny benefits to one club while granting the same benefits to another."
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Posted by Editor at 02:54 PM
May 02, 2008
CIA Foresaw Torturering Prisoners as 'Issue'
The CIA concluded that criminal, administrative or civil investigations stemming from harsh interrogation tactics were "virtually inevitable," leading the agency to seek legal support from the Justice Department, according to a CIA official's statement in court documents filed yesterday. The CIA said it had identified more than 7,000 pages of classified memos, e-mails and other records relating to its secret prison and interrogation program, but maintained that the materials cannot be released because they relate to, in part, communications between CIA and Justice Department attorneys or discussions with the White House.
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The CIA concluded that criminal, administrative or civil investigations stemming from harsh interrogation tactics were "virtually inevitable," leading the agency to seek legal support from the Justice Department, according to a CIA official's statement in court documents filed yesterday. The CIA said it had identified more than 7,000 pages of classified memos, e-mails and other records relating to its secret prison and interrogation program, but maintained that the materials cannot be released because they relate to, in part, communications between CIA and Justice Department attorneys or discussions with the White House.
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Posted by Editor at 05:11 PM
Brainwashing School Children With 'Mobile Propaganda Unit'
I noticed a few unlucky school children being waved into this thing which is presently sitting outside the Colorado History Museum: See here for more on this breathtakingly inspiring exhibit.
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I noticed a few unlucky school children being waved into this thing which is presently sitting outside the Colorado History Museum: See here for more on this breathtakingly inspiring exhibit.
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Posted by Editor at 04:10 PM
Amazon.com to New York: We're Not Your Tax Collector
Amazon.com is fighting back with a lawsuit trying to strike down New York state's new law forcing the online retailer to collect sales taxes on the state's behalf. The dispute, which is before a state court in Manhattan, is heading toward a constitutional showdown that will center on whether New York State is hindering interstate commerce by imposing on out-of-state companies, such as Amazon.com, the burden of serving as a tax collector for New York.
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Amazon.com is fighting back with a lawsuit trying to strike down New York state's new law forcing the online retailer to collect sales taxes on the state's behalf. The dispute, which is before a state court in Manhattan, is heading toward a constitutional showdown that will center on whether New York State is hindering interstate commerce by imposing on out-of-state companies, such as Amazon.com, the burden of serving as a tax collector for New York.
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Posted by Editor at 03:54 PM
Study Questions 'No Child' Act's Reading Plan
Students enrolled in a $6 billion federal reading program that is at the heart of the No Child Left Behind law are not reading any better than those who don't participate, according to a U.S. government report. The study released yesterday by the Department of Education's research arm found that students in schools that use Reading First, which provides grants to improve elementary school reading, scored about the same on comprehension tests as their peers who attended schools that did not receive program money.
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Students enrolled in a $6 billion federal reading program that is at the heart of the No Child Left Behind law are not reading any better than those who don't participate, according to a U.S. government report. The study released yesterday by the Department of Education's research arm found that students in schools that use Reading First, which provides grants to improve elementary school reading, scored about the same on comprehension tests as their peers who attended schools that did not receive program money.
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Posted by Editor at 08:51 AM
May 01, 2008
D.C. Forging Surveillance Network
The D.C. government is launching a system today that would tie together thousands of city-owned video cameras, but authorities don't yet have the money to complete the high-tech network or privacy rules in place to guide it. The system will feature round-the-clock monitoring of the closed-circuit video systems run by nine city agencies. In the first phase, about 4,500 cameras trained on schools, public housing, traffic and government buildings will feed into a central office at the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency. Hundreds more will be added this year.
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The D.C. government is launching a system today that would tie together thousands of city-owned video cameras, but authorities don't yet have the money to complete the high-tech network or privacy rules in place to guide it. The system will feature round-the-clock monitoring of the closed-circuit video systems run by nine city agencies. In the first phase, about 4,500 cameras trained on schools, public housing, traffic and government buildings will feed into a central office at the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency. Hundreds more will be added this year.
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Posted by Editor at 02:30 PM
Secret Wiretap Warrants Double Since 9/11
The number of secret warrants used in counterterrorism and espionage cases have more than doubled since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to an annual Justice Department report released yesterday. For 2007, the department confirms that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), the secret court that approves such warrants, approved 2,370 requests, compared to 1012 in 2000.
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The number of secret warrants used in counterterrorism and espionage cases have more than doubled since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to an annual Justice Department report released yesterday. For 2007, the department confirms that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), the secret court that approves such warrants, approved 2,370 requests, compared to 1012 in 2000.
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Posted by Editor at 01:32 PM
US Department of Justice banned from Wikipedia
Wikipedia has temporarily blocked edits from the US Department of Justice after someone inside the government agency tried to erase references to a particularly-controversial Wiki-scandal. Early last week, the Boston-based Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) was accused of organizing a secret campaign to influence certain articles on the "free encyclopedia anyone can edit". Just days later, the DoJ's IP range was used to edit the site's entry on the Pro-Israel "media-monitoring group," lifting a new section that detailed the controversy.
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Wikipedia has temporarily blocked edits from the US Department of Justice after someone inside the government agency tried to erase references to a particularly-controversial Wiki-scandal. Early last week, the Boston-based Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) was accused of organizing a secret campaign to influence certain articles on the "free encyclopedia anyone can edit". Just days later, the DoJ's IP range was used to edit the site's entry on the Pro-Israel "media-monitoring group," lifting a new section that detailed the controversy.
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Posted by Editor at 01:27 PM
BIG MAC Tax: Lawmakers Considering 'Sin' Tax On Fast Food
WINDSOR, N.J. -- The sputtering economy has caused an increase in prices of many staples including gasoline, rice, ice cream, even beer. Now some lawmakers in New Jersey are considering taking food taxes a step further and install a proverbial "sin" tax on fast food. Yes, the idea of marking up your favorite fast food burger or pack of fries is actually being tossed around, and it's not settling well with many residents. "They're taxing everything. Now you're gonna tax fast food? That's crazy," said Newark resident Miriam Robertson.
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WINDSOR, N.J. -- The sputtering economy has caused an increase in prices of many staples including gasoline, rice, ice cream, even beer. Now some lawmakers in New Jersey are considering taking food taxes a step further and install a proverbial "sin" tax on fast food. Yes, the idea of marking up your favorite fast food burger or pack of fries is actually being tossed around, and it's not settling well with many residents. "They're taxing everything. Now you're gonna tax fast food? That's crazy," said Newark resident Miriam Robertson.
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Posted by Editor at 11:29 AM
