Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Every household, every business office, every police station, every fire department and every school principal's office should have a NOAA Weather Radio.

It should be standard practice for every household no  matter what city, no matter what state, no matter what territory of the USA to have a NOAA Weather Radio.


This one is advertised at REI for $39.95 (click title to entry - thank you). I am sure there are other places to purchase them including local stores.  This one is a "Midland WR-120 Weather Radio".  Be sure it is a reliable brand when purchasing.


It is more than tornadoes.  A NOAA weather radio will alert the listener to severe weather no matter what it is, severe thunderstorm and local flooding as well.  This is not a joke.  This is survival in the age of the Climate Crisis.  The tornado outbreak that hit and is hitting the USA today is very early in the season for any type of outbreak.  The arctic air from the north slammed into tropical air from the equator.  


Get for real.  These little radios should be everywhere.


AND PUT THE BATTERY in them as well as plugging them in so the batteries don't run out.  Pay attention to the strength of the batteries and not put any in the radio with expiration dates that indicate they are marginal to use.


Do this.  Seriously.

The GM-Peugeot deal is an empty deal. Basically Peugeot couldn't get an operating cost loan.

Both CEOs should be fired.  Something one would never see with Bain Capital handling the 'deal.'


The 'deal of all deals' is that Peugeot gets operating CASH and GM gets to have parts for their cars.  By the year 2016 both manufacturers will be using the same internal parts for their manufacturing.  It is a consolidation of manufacturing that will create 'sameness' between the two auto makers and not really achieve anything.  Supposedly, by purchasing raw materials and possibly consolidating work forces (either in the USA or Europe has been decided yet) both will save money.  GM never does the right thing for the people of the USA.  Here we go again. Either way, it will Europe or the USA that will take an economic hit from this.  Peugeot should have fired their CEO when they ran out of liquidity.


Why does that sound familiar?


So, while Phillipe Varin, CEO of Peugeot (above) should have been fired, now, both should be canned off the job.


I think it was Ford in 2008 that didn't need a bailout and borrowed all the monies it needed at 0% interest rates?  Yes?  Yep.


...As part of the deal, (click title to entry - thank you) GM intends to take a 7% stake in the French automaker. Peugeot intends to raise $1 billion in new capital.


The two companies are seeking efficiencies that will make them more competitive in Europe's car market.


GM's European business lost €700 million there last year and the company has said it's determined to turn it around.


The two companies said in a joint statement that they'll continue to sell their own vehicles independently and on a competitive basis. The deal will mean they can leverage a combined purchasing volume of $125 billion with suppliers....


So, let's see purchasing raw materials jointly is going to save them all that money?  


Shhhh....


I don't think so.  Raw materials are commodities and that is where all the Wall Street money is now.  Not going to happen.  GM now owns 7% of Peugeot, that's all.  GM stockholders will get their share of ? Profits ?.  And given Varin's track record.  Like.  What dividends?


As of right now Wall Street is coveting the deal and will suck the living life out of it. 


So, by 2016, the two companies will have to downsize their manufacturing plants and consolidate parts to their vehicles.  And don't tell me for one minute they don't know it. 


Wall Street sees this as a matter of 'synergy.'  "Sameness in energy."  I think the outcomes are more than obvious.  The synergy is the bargaining chip for investors.  I think it is called 'investor confidence.'  Which is why the market is over 13000.


No matter which way one looks at this it is consolidation.  Raw materials is an excuse for outsourcing either to Europe or the USA.  There are unions at both manufacturers, so its anyone's guess.

...Jean-Pierre Mercier, (click here) union representative at Peugeot's factory in the Paris suburb of Seine-Saint Denis, said 1,900 French manufacturing jobs would be cut, along with another 3,100 in areas like sales, information technology and research and development.

"The group's international development can't be carried out by cutting our jobs here given that we're the ones who created PSA's wealth," Mercier said on the sidelines of a works council meeting.

Hundreds of protesters demonstrated outside the meeting, which took place at Peugeot's Paris headquarters near the Arc de Triomphe....
What 'the deal' will do is pit the two unions against each other to keep jobs.  It would be better if they spoke to each other long before the demolition happens.  There is a way out of this for the unions and it surrounds the manufacturing of parts.  I have mentioned on this blog before how non-unionized shops are being set up by heavy investment to undermine the sale of parts from manufacturers.
If Peugeot and GM can be convinced to not only manufacturer vehicles but maintain their own plants for parts it would continue to employ workers and insure quality.  Now, that is a deal with a sustainable economic impact because we all know without employment their products are worthless if they can't sell them.


The challenges to any CEO is not about consolidation to find profits.  That is the OLD WORLD.  It is a profoundly bad habit.  But, the real challenge to CEOs is to expand their market share by employing more people and recapturing the business that is rightfully theirs from the thieves of Wall Street and the Billionaires set on 'cheap profits' by selling mimiced parts and cheap knock offs like batteries.


Fisher Body was actually a valuable asset to GM because it was quality.  Quality and employment at plants that supply it is the future of any corporation.  For every employee with a sustainable job the market share increases.  Consolidation is for failing corporations, not ones with a future.  Unions insure the future of a company through strengthening market share and building consumer confidence.  


Consumer Confidence IS in just a few words: "How do I know that I am getting what I pay for?" Reputation is a good beginning.


Consolidation of any aspect of a company cheapens it best returns. Consolidation profits are short term bonus returns and not the ensured longevity of the company. It is boom and bust.  It is THE BUBBLE and not the stability.


AC Delco and Interstate Batteries have always competed.  Interstate is an incredible battery and after the AC went dead in the GM, I always purchased interstate.  They'll start anything, anywhere.  I think it is called quality,  Interstate batteries will start a rock rolling.  Literally. 


When there are independent parts manufacturing there is not only a change in the quality of the product, but, also a decrease in market share.  Sure the independent blood suckers hire employees, but, they aren't necessarily employees, such as those in India and China and Iraq, that will purchase products.  The independent blood suckers aren't paying union wages and shrink market share.  They shrink market share even for their own products.  


Relinquishing any market share for parts manufacturing is simply not good business.  How can GM claim to be able to insure the best outcomes to their products if mechanics are not using GM parts?  Why are manufacturers of major products simply shrugging their shoulders and giving up without a fight?  It makes absolutely no sense from any standpoint.

It looks like China took home a message of hope after visiting the USA.


Is it more than we can hope for to believe he loves his people more than power?


U.S.: North Korea agrees to suspend nuclear activities (click title to entry - thank you)


Updated 13m ago
The announcement comes little more than two months after the death of longtime ruler Kim Jong Il, and suggests North Korea has met the key U.S.preconditions for restarting multi-nation disarmament-for-aid talks that the North withdrew from in 2009.
State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the North has agreed to allow International Atomic Energy inspectors to verify and monitor the moratorium on uranium enrichment and confirm disablement of its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon.
Her statement says the U.S. will meet with North Korea to finalize details for a proposed package of 240,000 metric tons of food aid....

How does a 99% Bank begin? Easy. Ready? Okay.

The 99% Bank has to have a committed membership and/or depositors.


The terms to the savings accounts are different than what is found on the market today.


Imagine a bank where THREE PERCENT interest is amortized annually.  Not daily, not monthly but annually.


Then imagine having 2000 depositors.  More?  Sure.  But, let's start with 2000.


Those depositors have savings accounts whereby they deposit $1 per week.  Besides their checking accounts IF there are checking accounts offered.


$1 per week deposit is a cash inflow of $2000 per week.  Anyone can take if from there.  $5 per week.  $10 per week.  $20 per week.  


Now, where does the THREE PERCENT interest come from?  Growing the local economy that's where.  A small portion of those very liquid assets, let's say 10% ONLY is invested with repayments of loans monthly.


Ever hear of Microloans?  They work.  They work exceptionally well and there is not a bank in the USA that specializes in them.


The monthly repayment incurs interest of 0.3%.  In ten months the monies loaned will have earned THREE PERCENT interest.  If the monthly repayment is 0.4%, the monies will have not only made three percent interest, but, four percent and that is called OPERATING EXPENSES.  If the loan is repaid at 0.6 percent interest monthly that is not only operating expenses but the payment of THREE PERCENT interest to the annual amortized payments to all the depositors.


In the meantime, the bank has 90% liquid equity and growing its own.


What is happening with the loans?  They are regrowing the economy, putting people into small businesses, probably working out of their homes.  


So, therefore, what is happening to the deposits to the 99% Bank?  They are taking on different definitions, now there are business accounts.  There is growing wealth in the community and the bank becomes more secure.


The key to the 99% Banks is growth and financial fiscal security as demonstrated by sound investment.


What happens to those that have taken loans and are repaying them with SIMPLE INTEREST?  They are proving their ability to be responsible with money and they are developing a new base of 'credentialing' for credit.


This is not difficult.  It can begin with a 'Union' of interested citizens.  It doesn't have to be called a bank.  It can be called any darn thing anyone wants to call it.

Is Romney better than Reagan?

Absolutely.


Reagan was the best front man Wall Street had.  He actually believed his own reality while Wall Street robbed the country blind.


Romney will actually be a better actor than Reagan to allow Wall Street's continued destruction of the security of the Middle Class, the further victimization of the Poor and removal of all that stands between the people of the USA and Wall Street owing the world.


Heck, Reagan wasn't nothin' compared to Romney, after all it was Romney that created poverty and dressed it up in a salesperson uniform.

Is this sick or what? The West can't even place sanctions on a nuclear threat without Plutocrats siphoning profits.


By John Kemp
U.S. and EU sanctions on Iran’s crude oil exports and its central bank were not supposed to affect either the volume of oil available or its price,provided markets reacted “rationally.” (click title to entry - thank you)


Rationally?  They better act rationally!  Why is this even an option?
The free market system is threatening national security of many nations.  When is this mess going to stop?  Does anyone actually believe opportunistic plutocrats will resist anything but Wall Street chaos to drive up prices?  Hell, no.
Wall Street is exploitation.  There was a time when it wasn't.  It was where investors went to find opportunity, but, these days it is about scalping short term gains ASAP if not by the minute.  It is hideous.  This is no longer an investment market, it is Las Vegas.


An entire generation of Americans are rooked out of their future because greed merchants rob cash from markets and sequester it in their own bank rolls.


Then we see liquidity companies, private liquidity companies offering IPOs to obtain more cash out of the markets.  


Look, Wall Street crashed when it hit 14,000 and we are seeing private liquidity companies looking for more money to run their operations in offering IPOs.  Where does any reasonable person see this going?


In the good ole' days, investors liked their dividends because it allowed them financial security.  They bankrolled those dividends to retire and if they owned enough stock they could actually quit their day jobs.


Example:


A dear family friend, about four decades ago, touted the benefits of mutual funds. You know what he did for a living?  He was an independent business person of a small business called a shoe store.  The kind of shoe store where the proprietor worked along with those he hired to actually fit the customer's foot.  


When he paid for his shop and his home and had money saved besides he looked at a place where that money could make interest more than he was making at his shop.  It was sitting in a bank account and he wanted to earn more than 5%, which was the going rate back then.  So, he invested in the least risky stock market offering, The Mutual Fund.


Granted the stock market had an overall value of $1000 back then, but, what does that tell you?


That is the kind of analogy that should exist today, but, over time the markets got greedy and they actually believed they could out perform banks in offering 5% savings accounts, so they 'thunk up' the 401K.  That was the beginning of the end of Middle Class security.  


Now, the tail is waging the dog.  There is absolutely no security for the Middle Class, the American Dream has been trashed and national security is at the whim of market pressures.


I DON'T THINK SO.


It isn't enough that the security of the Middle Class is gone, now political cronies want to buy elections so the entire of SSI and Medicare can be in their coffers, too. 


Hello, America?  Where have you gone?  Where are your local savings accounts?  Where are the banks that sincerely know you personally and value you for your deposit of $20 per week?  Isn't saving 5 to 10 percent of your earnings enough for you?  What makes anyone believe a savings account isn't more secure than an investment?  It is backed by the FDIC, Wall Street should have such guarantees.


Oops, there I go touting big government again.

"I wanna be like Ford feeling." GM is creating it's own emergency again.

Remember all the cash GM was bank rolling to insure against any future market collapse?  For some reason the CEO can't seem to leave it alone.


FRANKFURT/PARIS
Wed Feb 29, 2012 7:36am EST
(Reuters) - French car maker PSA Peugeot Citroen's (PEUP.PA) alliance talks with General Motors (GM.N) may yet fail as the U.S. automaker hesitates over criticism from investors, a source with knowledge of the discussions said.
Intense public scrutiny is also undermining the draft deal, in which GM would take a small Peugeot stake as part of a 1 billion euro ($1.34 billion) share issue by the cash-strapped French automaker, the source said, adding: "This is not a done deal yet."
Peugeot has yet to offer any public statement, more than 18 hours after France's AMF market watchdog demanded a response to press reports on the discussions that sent its shares yo-yoing. GM has also declined to comment.
The Detroit-based automaker is not completely convinced by the draft deal on the table, the source said.
GM shares have dropped 4.4 percent since the alliance plan was first reported by a French newspaper on February 21, while Peugeot's have advanced 6.6 percent....
GM will be competing against its own products with this investment.  Where are the unions when you need them?  GM will fail again.  This was its downfall before!  Those bonuses must be amazingly attractive, but, alas the price of GM stocks fall again.


Record gasoline prices have not been set yet, that occurred in July of 2008 which is reflected below.


WASHINGTON
Tue Feb 28, 2012 3:39pm EST

(Reuters) - Senate leader Harry Reid (click title to entry - thank you) on Tuesday said he hoped the Federal Trade Commission would look into rising domestic gasoline prices, noting "rampant speculation" in oil markets.

"I would hope the Federal Trade Commission can help us" by probing the run-up in prices, Reid said in response to a reporter's question about what lawmakers could do to tackle rising retail gasoline prices.

Average U.S. retail gasoline prices are now at nearly $3.72 per gallon, up from $3.37 a year ago. The price could pass $4, especially if political tensions with Iran, a major producer, continue into the U.S. summer driving season that increases demand....
Rampant speculation, gee, ya think?


February 29, 2012 12:07 pm
Japan nears deal to cut Iran oil imports
By Ben McLannahan in Tokyo

Japan is nearing agreement with the US (click here) on a deal to make deeper cuts to its Iranian oil imports, a move designed to head off sanctions against Japanese banks operating in the US.

Koichiro Gemba, Japan’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that Tokyo and Washington were “in the final stages” of talks. “We’ve reached pretty deep mutual understanding,” Mr Gemba said. “I don’t think there’s reason at this point for concern about becoming the target of sanctions.”...

It isn't a matter of not having Iranian oil that is increasing prices, it is a matter of speculation.  There are other oil sources, Iran is a convenience to many that can seek supply elsewhere without difficulty.


And where exactly is USA Aid to Pakistan going?  To Pakistan?  Or Iran?  It sounds like "Oil for Food" to me.

Iran offers Pakistan 80,000 barrels per day of oil: official (click here)

By Qasim Nauman
ISLAMABAD | Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:55am EST
(Reuters) - Iran has offered 80,000 barrels per day of oil to Pakistan on a three-month deferred payment plan, an official in Islamabad said on Wednesday, in an attempt to soften the impact of Western sanctions and ease some of Pakistan's energy needs.
Tehran's offer comes a week after Pakistani officials revealed that Iran had asked to import a million tonnes of wheat in a barter deal, with the latest Western sanctions over Tehran's nuclear program disrupting critical food imports.
"It is only an initial offer of 80,000 barrels (per day) on deferred payment at the moment," Irfan Qazi, a spokesman for Pakistan's Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, told Reuters....

Romney assaults Middle Class

Romney wants to run on his record at Bain as a job creator.  So, let's take a look at that.  He has already stated he would have eliminated the unions in the Auto Industry Bailout.  That wouldn't have effected Ford and if GM and Chrysler were allowed to destroy their unions all their skilled labor would have walked out the door.  Besides, I don't believe a bailout should take the 'side' of the Plutocrats, but, the people in majority effected, which were the unions and other manufacturers of parts that would have been destroyed along with it.


So, Romney has no moral grounds, but, to understand his lust for money all one has to do is look at his record and contribution to the destruction of jobs able to sustain a life in the USA.
February 27, 2012 5:00 AM

Romney's Retail Jobs Offer More Low Wages Than Middle Income (click title to entry - thank you)

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Mitt Romney says the U.S. can be “the best place in the world to be middle class again” and points to his hand in founding companies such as Staples Inc. and The Sports Authority Inc. to show he can create jobs to get people there.
While these retailers provide salaried positions, including store manager, that offer a path to the middle class, the majority are hourly jobs that don't. Sales associates at the two chains make less than $9 an hour on average, according to survey data from Glassdoor.com. At that rate, which is common in the industry, someone working 40 hours a week would earn below the poverty line of $19,090 for a family of three.
“Some people in those companies in management do fine,” said Stephanie Luce, who studies low-wage labor issues as an associate professor at the City University of New York's Murphy Institute. However, “the way to make a living wage is to get into a management position, and there are very few of those.”
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 60 percent of workers in office supply and sporting goods stores are salespeople or cashiers, who are generally paid even less.
While Romney, a former private equity executive, has pegged his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on aiding the middle class, the bulk of the retail jobs he touts underscore the widening income gap that can make reaching it more elusive....
Romney is the one percent and not just by tax return only.  He facilitated the destruction of the Middle Class.  He is counting on his billionaire buddies at the his superpacs to buy him the election so he can do it all over again for them.
We all know Republicans have a long history of saying one thing during elections and doing quite the opposition once in office.  What makes anyone believe that is going to change?
continued...

As new attacks on Homs begin, Assad is unaffected.

In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, greets his supporters after he casts his ballot at a polling station during a referendum on the new constitution, in Damascus, Syria, on Sunday Feb. 26, 2012. (AP /SANA)



Date: Mon. Feb. 27 2012 1:45 PM ET


WARSAW, Poland — Poland's diplomats are working to get wounded Western journalists evacuated from the Syrian city of Homs and the bodies of a U.S. journalist and a French photographer out of the country, the Foreign Ministry said Monday.
Also Monday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he believes the two killed journalists were "assassinated" and that Syria's President Bashar Assad "must go."
Earlier this month, Poland's Embassy in Damascus took charge of representing U.S. interests in Syria, after Washington closed its mission there as a sanction against the escalating violence....


Assad's forces are going door to door without discrimination and assassinating people.  These forces up to now have been protesters without arms to defend themselves or culminate in an assault against Assad's troops.  This is slaughter.  There are no arrests, but, only killings.



February 29, 2012

UN Says Over 7,500 Killed in Syrian Crackdown (click here)

...U.N. political chief Lynn Pascoe said Tuesday he has "credible reports" from Syria of more than 100 civilians being killed every day, "including many women and children." 
"The international commission of inquiry for Syria, in a report issued 22 February, concluded that the Syrian government forces have committed widespread systematic and gross human rights violation amounting to crimes against humanity with the apparent knowledge and consent of the highest levels of the state," said Pascoe. "I commend this report to each of the members of this council. It does not make easy reading, but its implications for our responsibility are clear."...



He has no reason to stop, with every death there is more incentive to continue his slaughtering.  It is sort of like watching Hilter on digital.  If we knew then what we knew now, I am sure the Jewish race would be more intact.


Actually, Hitler had more discrimination in removing the Jews to remote camps for gassing.  Yeah, in all reality, Hitler was more covert than Assad.  In all honesty.

Syria: Bashar al-Assad 'could be classified as war criminal' (click here)

10:07AM GMT 29 Feb 2012

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could be classified as a war criminal, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said as the United Nations announced more than 7,500 civilians had been killed by his forces since the start of the revolt.

At least 25 people were killed in the shelling of opposition strongholds by Syrian forces on Tuesday, activists said. In Homs alone, opposition groups said hundreds of civilians had been killed or wounded in the 24-day-old assault.
As world dismay grew over the bloodshed, France said the Security Council was working on a new Syria resolution and urged Russia and China not to veto it, as they have previous drafts.
An outline drafted by Washington focused on the humanitarian situation in order to try to win Chinese and Russian support and isolate Assad, Western envoys said. But they said the draft would also suggest Assad was to blame for the crisis, a stance Russia in particular has opposed.
In the besieged district of Baba Amro and other parts of Homs, terrified residents were enduring dire conditions, without proper supplies of water, food and medicine, activists said.
A wounded British photographer managed to escape from Homs, but the fate of French reporter Edith Bouvier was not clear....

There have been several climate events.

February 29, 2012
0530z
UNISYS Water Vapor USA Satellite (click here for 12 hour loop)


1 killed as possible tornadoes hit the Midwest

6:51 a.m. Wednesday, February 29, 2012


...The death happened (click title to entry - thank you) when a possible tornado hit a mobile home park in southwest Missouri, south of Buffalo, said Lt. Dana Eagan of the Dallas County Sheriff's Office. Another 13 people at the trailer park were injured, she said. Crews would begin searching the area once the sun came up, Eagan said.
The storm also knocked out power to all of Buffalo, Eagan said.
Other hard-hit were areas in southwest Missouri included Branson and Lebanon.
In Branson, there were at least a dozen injuries including people trapped in their homes, National Weather Service meteorologist Mike Griffin said. The apparent tornado moved through downtown Branson, heavily damaging the city's famous theaters, Griffin said....


Possibly wind sheer.

1dead after Coast Guard helicopter crash in Ala. (click here)

Updated 8m ago
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) – Authorities searching for three missing crew members after the crash of a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter in the Gulf of Mexico say fog has hampered the air search, but divers were planning another attempt to get inside the submerged aircraft.
The MH-65C helicopter crashed Tuesday evening in Mobile Bay, near Point Clear, Ala., Petty Officer 2nd Class Elizabeth Bordelon said.
She said one crew member was found unresponsive, and was later declared dead.
Chief Petty Officer John Edwards said shortly before 6 a.m. that fog was beginning to clear and visibility was improving. He said divers overnight had gone to the site of the helicopter, in about 13 feet of water, but were unable to gain access to its fuselage. He said they planned to try again Wednesday morning....

Charged with aggravated murder, he may never see a trial considering his circumstances.

Suspected Chardon High School shooter T.J. Lane is escorted by authorities on Tuesday.


A crying, frightened student told a 911 operator that "we just had a shooting at our school. We need to get out of here" just minutes after a teen gunman opened fire in the cafeteria of Chardon High School in Ohio on Monday....


Three counts of aggravated anything means society will not receive the ultimate justice for the crime, but, will bear some of the burden for it.  Three counts is still three counts and if sentences are served consecutively it could equate to a life sentence, however, given the circumstances of Mr. Lane's life he may be found unable to stand trial or committed for treatment.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act - The Second Circuit is "W"rong


The law (click title to entry - thank you) was written by the former Senator Larry Craig and signed into law by Georgie, but, that isn't why it is unconstitutional.


This seems fairly straight forward to me, actually.


It violates States Rights.  In other words it allows the distribution of firearms by manufacturers to any state in the union in complete disregard of the State Legislation to prohibit them.


If California wants to make the sales of Assault Guns illegal this removes that by not holding responsible the manufacturers for the illegal distribution into the California.


Section 3 -
Prohibits a qualified civil liability action from being brought in any state or federal court against a manufacturer or seller of a firearm, ammunition, or a component of a firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce, or against a trade association of such manufacturers or sellers, for damages, punitive damages, injunctive or declaratory relief, abatement, restitution, fines, penalties, or other relief resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of a firearm....


It allows free interstate arms sales and transportation regardless of the laws of the State.  Manufacturers have no responsibility to be sure their firearms are not found in California if they are prohibited there.  That means they can sell freely to Nevada without any concern about the sales and transport to other states or over the border to Mexican Drug Cartels.


It allows manufacturers to sell to any gun shop, anywhere without worrying about whom their customers are.  So, if a gun shop in Texas wants to sell weapons to mules going to Mexico the manufacturer has no liability in allowing such activity.  As a matter of fact it encourages the sale of more guns 'for profit' REGARDLESS of the ultimate customer or use.


So, while American gun manufacturers should be held liable, as a deterrent, to the ultimate use of their product, instead they can sell them like water from a faucet.  Imagine a group of rebels seeking guns for use against law enforcement in the USA.  A very real scenario.  There is no liability for the uncontrolled manufacture of guns going anywhere in the USA or abroad.  


Better yet, Brazil.  Brazil is one of the NRA's pride an joy.  There are regular killings of innocent people in that country now because the Brazilian landscape is saturated with weapons.  


The banner reads: “586 dead police officers - for less than R$ 30 a day”. The daily rates for a police officer in Rio de Janeiro is $17 a day. Photo by Thiago Velloso  (click here)


S. 397 PLCAA was actually passed when the height of deaths of police officers were being realized in Brazil.  The NRA was active in promoting the gun presence there and literally the Brazilian government could not stop it.


S. 397: Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act
10/26/2005--Public Law. (This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on July 29, 2005.



The defeat of a historic referendum to ban guns in South America's largest country has the American pro-gun group's fingerprints all over it....

October 25, 2005



Brazilians flatly rejected a plan to ban the commercial sale of firearms and ammunition in a historic national referendum on Sunday. The vote is a victory for Brazil's wealthy gun lobby which opponents say used strategies learned from the National Rifle Association to shift public opinion.



An estimated 122 million citizens took part in the referendum -- the first of its kind in the world -- and preliminary counts showed 64 percent went against the ban while 36 percent backed it. The referendum -- which asked the simple question "Should the commercial sale of guns and ammunition to civilians be prohibited?" -- divided the country, a world leader in gun deaths, into "não" and "sim" camps....
So, while the NRA was overtaking the efforts of the government, through fear tactics of course, to stem the flow of guns into Brazil, Georgie and his friends were busy in Washington, DC to allow all the guns flowing into Brazil free of liability by their manufacturers.


The Brazil circumstances are case in point regarding PLCAA.


It is difficult to believe Brazil hasn't brought human rights issues against the manufacturers and THE USA, primarily George Walker Bush, given this legislation that protects the GOP's cronies.


Protecting cronies is an 'economy at any cost.'  



...Two months ago, polls showed 60 to 80 percent of Brazilians favored the ban as a way to control the estimated 17 million small arms that are circulating in the country. But as the vote neared, and as both sides of the issue were given free television time, a slick media blitz by the gun lobby appears to have shifted enough voter opinion....


I don't consider the legislation and NRA's involvement in Brazil a coincidence.  It absolutely is not.  Hence, the argument against PLCAA.  It is too dangerous a law.  It acts in contradiction of the sovereignty of nations and the protections of people.  


Blanketing a nation with firearms is not wise.  I think the last count of guns on the loose in the USA was 300 million.  That is one per person.  That is ridiculous and increases the STATISTICAL incidence of what happened in Ohio.  If there are more guns on the streets there will be more gun deaths.  So, for states and countries that want to reduce the violence unleashed against its citizens there is no defense against this level of exploitation.

Mr. Lane was not an 'at risk student,' he was guaranteed.


A .22 caliber pistol. A pea shooter. It would have to be used a point blank range if it were to kill someone.

A gun barrel (or its ammunition) that measures twenty – two hundredths of an inch in diameter.

...Prosecutors (click title to entry - thank you) identified the suspect as T.J. Lane and said he has admitted to taking a knife and a .22-caliber pistol into the cafeteria at Chardon High School in a town 35 miles east of Cleveland on Monday and firing 10 rounds....

Ten rounds is not an extended clip.  It is standard for most .22 caliber handguns.

Established in 1990, The NRA Foundation (click here) raises tax-deductible contributions in support of a wide range of firearm related public interest activities of the National Rifle Association of America and other organizations that defend and foster the Second Amendment rights of all law-abiding Americans. These activities are designed to promote firearms and hunting safety, to enhance marksmanship skills of those participating in the shooting sports, and to educate the general public about firearms in their historic, technological and artistic context. Funds granted by the NRA Foundation benefit a variety of constituencies throughout the United States including children, youth, women, individuals with physical disabilities, gun collectors, law enforcement officers hunters and competitive shooters.

The charitable giving of the National Rifle Association does nothing for people like Mr. Lane.  The charitable giving of the NRA is based in promoting right wing propaganda regarding the 2nd amendment and the use of guns at all levels of society, in the USA and internationally.

This all-time favorite event features an all-star lineup of the Second Amendment's most ardent defenders. Join some of America's biggest names on Friday, April 13 for an afternoon of motivational speeches. Reserve your seats today at nraam.org or call 877-672-7632. 

The NRA is breaking the law, this is a political action committee, not a non-profit; .org.  That is a sham.  The NRA is a political action committee and not an organization.  One might note Mr. Santorum's face in the upper right corner of the e-page.

Most if not all of the Right Wing organizations that fund candidates and media services serve their own purposes.  The sincerely don't care about social issues that surround their political will.  The organizations are above all that.  They believe society is allowed to be in 'free fall' so long as they are unrestrained in their market share and profit margins.






RICHMOND, Va. — Gov. Bob McDonnell signed a bill Tuesday that repeals Virginia’s one-handgun-a-month law, enacted in 1993 when the state was a haven for gun runners.
McDonnell had earlier expressed support for repealing the law, which limited individuals to one handgun purchase every 30 days but did not apply to rifles or shotguns. The General Assembly passed the legislation Feb. 15....
...The signing came after McDonnell met Saturday with families of people killed or injured in the April 2007 shooting rampage at Virginia Tech, the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. The families had hoped to persuade him to veto the bill, although they knew it was a long shot.
Andrew Goddard, whose son Colin was wounded in the Virginia Tech shooting, was among those who met with the governor. He said the governor had previously said he would sign the bill and “it would have been very difficult for him to go back on it.”
Goddard, president of the Virginia Center for Public Safety, reserved his harshest criticism for legislators who passed the bill.
“They have not learned a damn thing,” Goddard said in a telephone interview. Alluding to Monday’s school shooting that left three students dead in Ohio, Goddard said: “Here we are watching kids dying in other states, and we’re going to be a purveyor of firearms for other states.”...

Under the Bush Administration and a majority Republican Congress victims of gun crimes were striped of their rights to hold accountable the manufacturers of weapons.  It exonerates manufacturers from being responsible for responsible distribution of their products.

The law is the PLCAA (The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act), supposedly protected on the GOP's and the Robert's Court favorite clause, the Commerce Clause.  The law has stood regardless of moral objections by judges.  Previous challenges have made it to the 2nd Circuit but never the Supreme Court.
..."This is the highest court – and the first state Supreme Court (click here) – to directly consider the scope and constitutionality of this controversial federal law.   The PLCAA is the only law ever enacted by Congress that purports to utterly deprive a class of victims of their right to seek compensation against wrongdoers who caused them harm.  And it is the first law that bars states from using their courts to establish civil liability standards," said Lowy. "If the Kims win, we can change the way gun dealers do business and save lives. Today marks the 18th anniversary of the Brady Law and if Rayco had completed a background check on Coday, Simone Kim might be alive."

On August 2, 2006, Jason Coday, a bizarre-acting, methamphedamine-abusing fugitive who was prohibited by federal law from possessing or buying firearms, walked into Rayco Sales, the gun store of Ray Coxe.  Coday, who had a garbage bag filled with his belongings wrapped around his waist, told Coxe he was interested in obtaining a gun, and Coxe showed him a Ruger rifle, and told him the price was $195.  Coday soon left the store with the gun, leaving $200 in exchange. Coxe did not subject Coday to a background check and the paperwork required under federal law.  The store had two video surveillance systems, but Coxe later claimed that both videotapes did not record that day.  Two days later, Coday used the gun to kill Simone Kim, a 26-year-old man he had never met, who was at work as a painter outside the Juneau Fred Meyer store....

In the challenge to the law began with Caitlin Halligan.  The current New York Solicitor General is hated by the Right Wing.


Targeting the Second Amendment (click here for the activism of the Republican Policy Committee)


As Solicitor General of New York, Ms. Halligan vigorously advanced a specious legal theory attempting to hold gun manufacturers liable for the crimes of third parties.


Gun Owners of America described this as a strategy to “eliminate the manufacture of firearms in America.”


Despite the fact that New York law, as the appellate court explained, had “never recognized a common-law public nuisance cause of action”


advanced by Ms. Halligan,she mounted a crusade to hold the gun industry responsible for the “easy availability of illegal guns.”


The New York state court rejected Ms. Halligan’s call to judicial activism.
  
In 2003, a bipartisan coalition in Congress responded to the type of frivolous litigation pushed by Ms. Halligan by introducing the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA).  Ms. Halligan, in turn, sharply criticized this legislation,which Congress ultimately enacted with wide support. 


The National Rifle Association described PLCAA as “an essential protection both for the Second Amendment rights of honest Americans and for the continued existence of the domestic firearms industry.”


Undeterred, Ms. Halligan filed an amicus brief in federal court challenging the constitutionality of the PLCAA.  The Second Circuit, in rejecting Ms. Halligan’s argument, held that PLCAA was 
constitutional and dismissed the litigation against gun manufacturers.

The Republican Senate AGAIN returned judicial nominees of President Obama by obstructionism.

Caitlin Joan Halligan (born December 14, 1966) (click here) is an American lawyer and the Solicitor General of the state of New York from 2001 until 2007. She has been nominated by President Barack Obama to fill a federal judicial vacancy on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. On December 6, 2011, the Senate failed to invoke cloture by a vote of 54 ayes to 45 nays, falling six votes short of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate and proceed to a floor vote. Her nomination was returned to the President on December 17, 2011, pursuant to the rules of the Senate.

Posted at 01:57 PM ET, 02/28/2012

Ohio school shooting may draw attention to state’s lax gun laws


But the shooting is bound to push Ohio lawmakers and residents to look more closely at their gun laws.

Under Ohio gun laws, a person must be 21 years of age, pass a national background check and fill out a firearms transaction record to purchase a handgun. A state permit, firearm registration and owner’s license, however, are not needed.
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence rated Ohio only a 7 out of a possible score of 100 in terms of strong gun laws, saying that people can avoid background checks by buying handguns in private sales.
Last summer, Ohio Gov. John Kasich signed a “guns-in-bars” bill into law, making it legal to carry concealed firearms into bars, restaurants, shopping malls, nightclubs and sports arenas for the first time. The law is considered one of the broadest gun laws in the country.
Critics say Kasich passed the law because of a strong gun lobby, despite reports in 2009 and 2010 that found that nearly half of the guns used in crimes were sold in just 10 states, including Ohio....


Kasich's best effort to date to honor the dead is to fly the USA flag at half staff.  In the future he'll attend a prayer vigil, call the incident an unfortunate act of a mentally disturbed person, but, will never, not ever attempt to end the outrageous laws of Ohio in relation to their liberal gun laws that endanger the lives of all Americans, not just Ohioans.