It was a wedge tornado a mile wide. There was dearly little space to run to except underground.

This article is from "The Weather Channel." They do a great job at educating people and attempting to keep them safe. The survivors in this story followed their instincts. They were right. Their fear served them well.

May 2, 2017

By Sean Breslin

...Stevenson admitted she began to panic, (click here) stuck in an unfamiliar town with no idea where to go. She left the freeway on Exit 528 and stopped at the first building she saw off the exit – I-20 Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. The building was under construction for a planned expansion, and there were a few dozen vehicles for sale in the parking lot. In a matter of minutes, many of those cars would be pulverized and sent flying onto I-20.

"I headed toward the dealership thinking it was a gas station. I was so scared and didn't know what to do, but I saw the headlights of the other car that survived the tornado with me," Stevenson told weather.com. "Their headlights were like a beacon and they may have saved my life. I pulled in right behind the other car before wedging myself between the heavy scissor lift and the wall."

Knowing her only chance to survive would be if the car stayed on the ground, Stevenson got as low to the floor of her Honda Civic as she could and stayed on the phone with Zach. As she repeatedly yelled "I love you" into the phone, debris flew through the car and just above her head. The decision to get onto the floor of the vehicle saved her life....

May 2, 2017

By Scott Sistek

As former Lake Stevens resident Benjamin Jurkovich (click here) was deciding where to storm chase last weekend in the Midwest, he played a hunch and decided to head into eastern Texas.

He ended up being front and center to a mile-wide tornado that claimed the lives of five people and caused tremendous damage in Canton, Texas.

As he neared the town, already two relatively weak (by Texas) tornadoes had touched down in the vicinity, but then the major tornado would strike a short time later.

"I began heading southwest out of Canton to intercept," Jurkovich said. "The area I’d been tracking earlier was just to my northwest. A new area had formed to the southwest though, and was heading directly towards me and Canton, Texas."

He said he drove north to get out of that cell's way and then assessed the situation. It was a good decision....

                         

This is classic F-3 tornado damage.

My sincere sympathy to the families of those that were lost.

The reason these homes were not completely lost is because their walls are brick, otherwise, they would have been destroyed beyond recognition. Even with walls destroyed it is still an F3. I don't recognize the Enhanced Fajita Scale because it was created for insurance companies to cheat residents of their insurance monies. There is no such thing as a partial F3 tornado.

From what I can tell from the GOP health care bill, many people will be faced with large bills and bankruptcies will return to record highs again.

Health Care Savings Accounts are to help with deductibles and out of network costs. It is suppose to be an account that is tax free ahead of any tax filing. Such an account increase health care dollars by providing tax relief. These accounts were never intended to pay for everything. This opens up abuse by guesstimating a years expenses. That is not possible even with a. crystal ball.

They want to set up a special fund for the chronically ill to remove them from general pools. That probably needs to be done but it needs specifics. Who is this special pool? What qualifies a person to be included and who pays the premiums and what do those premiums amt  like? The bill is very sketchy.

Has the GAO scored this bill yet? People are going to lose insurance. It would be nice to pinpoint who they are and pinpoint how they will get care.

I also want a clear understanding of savings on premiums. It is only fair.

The more I think about it, the chronically ill will be a Medicare policy. Seniors already pay from $104.00 to $150.00 per month. It seems reasonable to have those with chronic problems to plan on the monthly premium everyone else pays.

"Death by a thousand cuts."

This is what has become a culture in the USA media. Lingchi methods are most often seen on "Game of Thrones" and "The Walking Dead." (click here) Then there were the moralizing Lingchi shows like CSI. I never watched them. They aren't good for a healthy mind.

This is what happened to Secretary Clinton's political career. She was brutalized in the media, the DNC emails hacked with Russia passing them on to Wikileaks and the last and final death blow came from "What's his name?" Oh, yeah, Comey. 

Secretary Clinton's candidacy was brutalized. Another woman candidate should expect the same thing.

Take a good look because this is one of the reasons there is a President Donald Trump. Oddly, the abuses are also on the Democratic agenda.

April 3, 2017
By Julia Edwards Ainsley

Washington (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (click here) announced steps on Monday to prevent the fraudulent use of H1B visas, used by employers to bring in specialized foreign workers temporarily, which appeared to fall short of President Donald Trump's campaign promises to overhaul the program.

A White House official said Trump may still do more on the program.

Trump had promised to end the lottery system for H1B visas, which gives each applicant an equal chance at 65,000 positions each year....

The American people are not in the mood to have elected officials state, "But, this does not effect American jobs."

August 24, 2014
By Nazuk Jain

H1B lottery process (click here) nothing but a random selection of H1B petitions for a fiscal year via a systemic algorithm. United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) started this lottery system back in 2008 when they received approximately 163,000 petitions for a cap subject number of 85,000 applications i.e. 65,000 regular quota  + 20,000 ADE Cap (Advanced Degree Exemption i.e. is available to those that graduate from a US universty/college with an Masters level or higher level degree)....

This programs do effect American jobs and it is a corrupt system that pays off election debt to companies that provide election monies. 

Say it after me, "The H1B Visa Program is corrupt."

One more time.

"The H1B Visa Program is corrupt."

Because it is very corrupt and panders to Wall Street companies that want to undermine the wages in the USA. Every time an H1B Visa recipient receives a job that pays less than expected by an American employee for the same job, it hurts more than one person; it hurts the country's working class.

CEOs across the spectrum of government corruption are not good CEOs. If the CEOs are relying on government programs to pad their bonus checks then they don't have the country's best interest at the center of their decision making. H1B Visas do not encourage long term stability with a company, it encourages dependency of both the worker and the company. Rather than working on a strong financial basis for any company, the Wall Street cronies count on government welfare to turn a profit. This is one of the ways they CHEAT the government, the people and their stockholders. 

The government is cheated because the taxes collected from employees with an H1B Visa is based on a lower wage. The income tax collected is lower, the company is making ends meet with such Visas and cheating their bottom line in a way that pays fair and equal taxes. These companies do not pay their normal tax rate, they pay a subsidized tax rate in addition to paying far less for labor.

The people are cheated because they have prepared for good paying jobs, have student loans in most instances and now they can't find a job. Not because the USA isn't producing more jobs, but, because of the fact the jobs are unavailable to Americans. That also hurts our economy. H1B Visa holders can also be working for a company in their homeland in addition to one in the USA. No one ever sees that money because they are paid in their homeland into a bank account there. So, their second job is performed in the USA, but, the income is never registered for income tax purposes.

October 2016

I don’t see why not. (click here) The US can control what goes on in the US. Your facts sound like none of it has to do with anything in the US. The US does not get to say what happens in other countries. If you are on your own time outside the H-1B job and the money comes from a foreign entity and the money does not even come into the US (not sure that would be essential either) it is none of US business. Maybe check the US tax code to see if the US tries to make some claim to tax revenue on it.

Interesting to think about. It would seem as though even H1B Visa holders can't make it on their salary either.

Oh, there is more than enforced poverty through the absence of work available to Americans in the USA. 

January 16, 2016

Currently, (click here) I am working in USA on H1B visa. I came to US in JAN 2015. So for income tax purpose, I am Non-Resident Indian for financial year 2015-16.

I have query regarding lottery winnings outside India. After reading income tax rules on web, I understood that if NRI wins lottery in USA, the lottery winnings can be transferred to Indian Bank account legally.

If I win lottery in April 2016 and permanently come back to India in Jun 2016, I think I will be considered Resident Indian for financial year 2016-17. In this case, will I be able to transfer lottery won in April 2016 to my Indian bank account? Will it be considered illegal?

If yes, that means, I will have to stay in US at least till Oct 1, 2016 so that my India stay will get reduced to less than 182 days and hence I will be considered NRI for FY 2016-17. The lottery won in April 2016 will be legal in this case. Please advise. Thank You!

And to bring the correct monies into the US Treasury costs the government real money.

May 2, 2017
By Janet Novack

...Why is the Internal Revenue Service (click here) reaching into the pocket of our newest citizens and resident aliens the moment they reach American soil?  The reason: the aliens are being caught in a net designed to catch significant tax abuse by U.S. citizens sheltering money in overseas bank accounts. The aggressive programs put in place to ferret out these hidden accounts have been generating billions of dollars for the Treasury Department, so there's been little incentive to tinker with them.

A July 2012 report from the Tax Justice Network estimated there's $21-$31 trillion secreted in offshore tax havens, but that's just a guess.  So far, the IRS has collected about $6.5 billion of this stash (in the form of back taxes, interest and penalties) from the 43,000 folks who have participated in its Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP), IRS Commissioner John A. Koskinen told the Senate Appropriations Committee last month.

Nobody knows how much of the uncollected portion of the cash cow is from innocent new citizens who were not aware of their tax liabilities.  But if left unchecked, the little-known practice of going after the assets that they have built up over a lifetime of living outside the U.S. could cause a brain drain of some of the most talented people who are helping to fuel our economy.

In fact, right now, our newest Americans can be fined up to 50% of the money they have overseas, if, after becoming U.S. resident taxpayers, they fail to file the right form. Worse still, neither they nor many of their accountants seem to know they need to submit a declaration of their foreign assets to the IRS....

American employed police officers/investigators have to go after abuses of the system now. The American people has to pay to stop systemic abuse by H1B Visa holders.

H1B Visa holders want more power. Imagine that, outsourcing jobs from within sovereign borders. Is that truly a sovereign right?

The H1B Visa holder is not suppose to work as a free lancer (It is unclear if working for a company from the homeland is considered free lancing.)  and if they work for another employer they are suppose to have an H1B Visa for each job held.

February 11, 2016
By Sam Harnett

...“It’s modern-day slavery, more or less,” Conda says. (click here)

Conda concedes that’s a bit of an overstatement. But he says it should be easier for H1B workers to become permanent residents so that they have more power in the workplace. He is writing to legislators and organizing with other foreign workers who he says are overlooked by politicians.

“None of the H1Bs are voters,” Conda says. “We’re hardly heard because we don’t matter at this point.”

One of the biggest advocates in the Indian community for overhauling the H1B visa is not a worker, but a tech businessman — Neeraj Gupta.

Like Conda, Gupta was also on an H1B once. He says worker abuse is the result of a bigger problem: The visa is no longer being used just to get top talent, but instead to outsource jobs....

The H1B Visa holder may or may not come from a democracy where people vote. For the majority, they seem to think they have a right to vote in the USA. They believe they have as much on the line as anyone else so they should be allowed to vote in the USA to improve their circumstances.

The prevalence of such outsourcing allows fraud to exist in what is coined "body shop." This foreign worker who is working under fraudulent practices states he is trapped and has to keep filing for new jobs that belong to Visa workers. Trapped. There is something called jail and deportation so he no longer is "trapped."

October 24, 2014
By Stephen Stock, Julie Putnam, Scott Pham and Jeremy Carroll

...Consulting firms recruit (click here) and then subcontract out skilled foreigners to major tech firms throughout the country and many in Silicon Valley.

Those who work for these third party firms that skirt the law often call them “body shops” and sometimes they get caught.

For example in August, 2014, a Cupertino man involved with one body shop pleaded guilty and was sentenced in US District Court to 19 felony counts of visa fraud where he admitted he knowingly applied for work visas for foreigners who had no job offers, filling out applications for fake jobs for a Silicon Valley tech firm.

However, some local workers say many don’t get caught. And the workers are the ones who suffer....

H1B Visa holders can apply for an H4B Visa for his spouse and children. There is nothing preventing spouses from working in the USA either. So there goes more jobs out of reach for Americans. Then while working lawfully in the USA the H1B Visa holder and his dependents can apply for permanent status. Oddly, the H1B Visa holder has to maintain a residence in his homeland even if his family is in the USA.

The practice is so lucrative universities are using H1B workers. PUBLIC universities are now employing foreign workers. They keep this up and there won't be Americans that can afford to go to the college.

But, it is also a strategy to destroy unions as well. Ya have to love this. Workers need a decent income to live in this country, be a member of the Middle Class and reach for the American dream. Wall Street and now universities it would seem are given all kinds of crony favors that allow them better profit margins or in the case of a public university, monies to spend differently.

Unions are there to protect Americans, yet they become an undesireable entity because Wall Street and now public entities want more money for bonuses and stockholders. THIS IS AN ARTIFICIAL WAY OF RENDERING PROFITS and budgets.

These practices, while legal, effect the entire economy because workers on unemployment are looking at impoverishment as their future. This is ridiculous. 

Unions are important organizations, especially when supporting AMERICANS in keeping their jobs. Ask the employees paying dues at a reduced rate because they are not members, but, simply employees how they feel about the unions when facing a mess like this. Those non-members are happy there is a power structure to push back because they can't. Yet, Governors and Congress continue to hack away at the strength of unions to end their existence in the USA.

UNIONS ARE VITAL TO A HEALTHY AMERICAN ECONOMY!

March 2, 2017
By Joe Millin

At the University of California's San Francisco campus, (click here) 79 IT employees lost their jobs this week, some of them after explaining to their replacements at Indian outsourcing firm HCL how to do their jobs.

The union representing the employees, University Professional and Technical Employees CWA Local 9119, says it's the first time a public university has offshored American IT jobs.

In a statement sent yesterday, UPTE-CWA says the layoffs could spread, since the HCL contract can be utilized by any of the 10 campuses in the University of California system, the nation's largest public university. "US taxes should be used to create jobs in the US, not in other countries," said Kurt Ho, a systems administrator who was quoted in the union's press release. Ho was required to train his replacement as a condition of getting his severance pay.

In its statement on the matter, UCSF says that it was pushed to hire outside contractors due to "increased demand for information technology and escalating costs for these services." The university says it will save more than $30 million by hiring HCL, after seeing IT costs nearly triple between 2011 and 2016, "driven by the introduction of the electronic medical record and increased digital connectivity."

The university says 49 UCSF employees were laid off, and it will eliminate another 48 jobs that are currently vacant or filled by contractors. "UCSF will not replace UCSF IT employees with H-1B visa holders, nor will HCL," the university wrote in a statement e-mailed to Ars....

These 79 workers WERE ALREADY QUALIFIED AND WORKING, yet a university can lay them off and destroy their jobs for the sole purpose of lowering costs.

This program is just "W"rong in that there is incentive for companies to use employees this way, while NEVER seeking to correct the shortage in the USA or advocating to government for the benefit of Americans to be educated to fill these jobs. It is permanent corruption in the USA.

President Carter, are you seeing this?

Hamas has won popular support by styling itself as a resistance movement willing to stand up to Israel 

May 2, 2017
By John Reed

Hamas, (click here) the militant Islamist group, on Monday dropped a call for Israel’s destruction and endorsed the creation of a Palestinian state inside 1967 borders, in a rhetorical shift that analysts said reflected the group’s political ambitions and changing priorities in a new Middle East.

A policy paper released in Doha by Khaled Meshaal, Hamas’s political leader, described the creation of an interim Palestinian state in the 1967 lines — the cornerstone of the two-decade-old peace process supported by Mahmoud Abbas’s Palestinian Authority — as “a formula for national consensus”.

The paper’s release came two days before Mr Abbas is due to meet Donald Trump, the US president, who has said he wants to achieve an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal with support from regional states, including Egypt....

Will President Trump help the Palestinians with a real economy they can value that will turn their anger into quality of life.?

"Losing my religion for equality" by Jimmy Carter

Women and girls (click here) have been discriminated against for too long in a twisted interpretation of the word of God.

I HAVE been a practising Christian all my life and a deacon and Bible teacher for many years. My faith is a source of strength and comfort to me, as religious beliefs are to hundreds of millions of people around the world. So my decision to sever my ties with the Southern Baptist Convention, after six decades, was painful and difficult. It was, however, an unavoidable decision when the convention's leaders, quoting a few carefully selected Bible verses and claiming that Eve was created second to Adam and was responsible for original sin, ordained that women must be "subservient" to their husbands and prohibited from serving as deacons, pastors or chaplains in the military service.

This view that women are somehow inferior to men is not restricted to one religion or belief. Women are prevented from playing a full and equal role in many faiths. Nor, tragically, does its influence stop at the walls of the church, mosque, synagogue or temple. This discrimination, unjustifiably attributed to a Higher Authority, has provided a reason or excuse for the deprivation of women's equal rights across the world for centuries....

Jimmy Carter was president of the United States from 1977 to 1981.

There is no doubt young people seeking their moral compass can be susceptible to leadership such as Putin and Russia. If Putin and Russia were on the path to peace I would be endorsing every effort, but, there is a far different agenda with the Russians these days.

Democratic leaders need to realize they cannot estrange their young citizens because they will continue their quest.

Send Baxter home! Honestly. Baxter is of no consequence to the USA. I am glad he felt like he wanted to linger a little longer. I guarantee he didn't pay attention to the time stamp so much as the date. 

May 2, 2017

A Canberra man has been imprisoned (click here) by immigration officials in the United States for overstaying his US visa by less than two hours, after being denied entry to Canada.

Baxter Reid, 26, and his American girlfriend, Heather Kancso, travelled to the Canadian border in upstate New York before Mr Reid was arrested by US border police on Sunday, April 24 local time....

The monument in this video is "Penarth War Memorial." (click here)

Jamie Dunmore can be found on "Facebook" and "You Tube." The search for peace and truth is on.

President Trump would receive strong support from Democrats in both the House and Senate, but, the Republicans would not support these initiatives.

May 1, 2017
By Jennifer Jacobs and Margaret Talev

President Donald Trump (click here) said he’s actively considering a breakup of giant Wall Street banks, giving a push to efforts to revive a Depression-era law separating consumer and investment banking.

“I’m looking at that right now,” Trump said of breaking up banks in a 30-minute Oval Office interview with Bloomberg News. “There’s some people that want to go back to the old system, right? So we’re going to look at that.”

Trump also said he’s open to increasing the U.S. gas tax to fund infrastructure development, in a further sign that policies unpopular with the Republican establishment are under consideration in the White House. He described higher gas taxes as acceptable to truckers -- “I have one friend who’s a big trucker,” he said -- as long as the proceeds are dedicated to improving U.S. highways....

There is a lot to consider when reflecting on 2008, if that is what President Trump is doing. Reviving Glass-Steagall is a strong cornerstone of reform, but, there has been a great deal of mischief that created a perfect storm in 2008.

There is no super computer built today that can perform a complete overview of the 2008 crash. Call it what you want, but, 2008 was a collapse. It was a Great Recession in regard to labor, but, President Obama carried out a large funding as his first act when taking office in 2009. It turned the failing labor numbers around.

At the time Paul Krugman, a Nobel Prize winner (click here) stated, the funding wasn't enough to fill in the hole left by the collapse. He was right. The funding bill was short by about half a trillion. It worked out, but, it took a little longer and required more legislation and funding for the Small Business Administration. 



April 21, 2017
By William D. Cohan

Among the many silly ideas (click here) floating around Washington these days about how to re-regulate Wall Street is that old chestnut about separating investment banking from commercial banking.

It’s getting a fresh look after Gary Cohn, the powerful head of President Trump’s National Economic Council, supposedly told a private gathering of the Senate Banking Committee recently that the Trump administration would be open to the idea. The president has yet to confirm publicly that he would support such legislation.

The concept is nothing new, of course. After the stock market crash of 1929, the so-called Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 gave banks a year to choose between commercial banking and investment banking. For the next 66 years, the law more or less stood until Congress repealed it, making de facto what had long been de jure. (Many banks had been violating it for years without consequences.)

Then in 2013, a bipartisan group of United States senators — led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona — proposed what they called the 21st-Century Glass-Steagall Act with the goal of breaking up banks with assets greater than $50 billion. They argued — incorrectly — that what caused the 2008 financial crisis was big banks again using their customers’ deposits to take big risks....            

Stop the pollution, cities are people, too.

May 1, 2017

By Cristian Farias

The Supreme Court ruled on Monday (click here) that the city of Miami can sue Bank of America and Wells Fargo under federal housing law for allegedly engaging in discriminatory lending practices toward minority borrowers. But in the same ruling, it set a high bar for cities claiming that they too were victims, down the road, of that discrimination.

In its lawsuit, filed in 2013, Miami contended that the two banks’ targeting of prospective black and Latino homeowners for riskier, less favorable mortgage loans ultimately drove a wave of defaults, foreclosures and a fall in property values in the city. As a result, Miami argued, it was left with less tax revenue and a rash of blighted homes that forced it to funnel more municipal resources into the affected communities.

The Supreme Court held in a 5-to-3 decision that Miami counts as an “aggrieved person”under the Fair Housing Act and therefore may use the law to pursue its claims against the banks.

So, now, cities are people, too.

“Here, we conclude that the City’s claims of financial injury in their amended complaints — specifically, lost tax revenue and extra municipal expenses — satisfy the ‘cause-of-action’ ... requirement” in the law, wrote Justice Stephen Breyer....                       

"When we invaded Iraq, we destroyed that seed bank and we destroyed the great ancient seeds that had been collected for the benefit of mankind."

SEED: The Untold Story (Official Theatrical Trailer) from Collective Eye Films on Vimeo.

Start with an arrest warrant for Marc T. Short for obstructing justice.

Everyone knows Russia is involved, it is no secret. Russia is carrying out the same methodology in nearly every democracy on Earth. Arrest Short!

If necessary Congress needs to appoint a "Special Prosecutor." 

STOP PLAYING WITH NATIONAL SECURITY!

May 1, 2017
by Oliver Willis

Marc T. Short, (click here) the White House director for Legislative Affairs, is leading the Trump administration’s obstruction of the congressional inquiry into Michael Flynn and Russia. Short is also a major player in Vice President Mike Pence’s political operation, and further connects Pence to the Flynn scandal.

As previously reported, Pence was in charge of the Trump transition team, which ostensibly included vetting Donald Trump’s appointments to his White House. Pence received information detailing Flynn’s status as a lobbyist for a foreign government, but later denied knowledge of the entire affair, claiming Flynn had lied to him. That claim led to Flynn’s removal from the position of national security adviser.

But a recent report from NBC News reveals that Pence did conduct a background check, albeit “very casually,” and was aware of Flynn’s connections to foreign governments, which the Trump team apparently ignored in order to appoint Flynn anyway.

The House Oversight Committee is seeking documents related to this process, but the White House is actively obstructing that investigation. Short authored the April 19 letter to the committee, refusing to turn over the requested documents about what the Trump team knew about Flynn and payments he received from the Russian government for an appearance at an event that was followed by dinner with Vladimir Putin.

In the letter, Short said it was “unclear” how the documents requested “would be relevant” to the inquiry. Both Democrats and Republicans have indicated that they view Flynn’s actions as potentially criminal, as he received guidance from the Department of Defense that taking money from Russia as a former military officer could break the law....                             

This was one of the tornadoes that killed so many people over the weekend.

27 tornadoes slammed the United States over the weekend, killing 13 and injuring dozens of people caught up in a huge storm system that barreled through Texas, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The storm formed late Friday night and is still tracking east, expected to bring more rain and thunderstorms to parts of the northeast and mid-Atlantic on Monday afternoon.

1 May 1917
1930.18z
UNISYS Water Vapor Satellite of the North and East Hemisphere (click here for 12 hour loop - thank you)

I checked this satellite about 7 AM today and I thought for sure it would be out of the Gulf of Mexico by now.

May 1, 2017
1930.18z
UNISYS Water Vapor GOES East Satellite (click here)

I am not so sure that is even a vortex so much as a tropospheric tornado. It has enormous size. That system has depth and width that stretches out into the Atlantic.

May 1, 2017
By Mika Miyashima

Honolulu (click here) - The Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu recorded a record low temperature of 61 degrees Sunday morning.  That beats the record low of 63 degrees set in 1995.

"There are a couple of different systems that are combining to affect our weather. One is a big upper level disturbance which is diving down from the north across the islands today, and then the other one is an old stationary front which is down by the big island."  Said Robert Ballard, Science and Operations Officer at the National Weather Service.

The National Weather Service says it's the combination of those two weather systems that's bringing the rain and cool weather.

In the last 24 hours, Maui has seen the most rainfall.

"They've had anywhere between 3 and 7 inches, a couple spots maybe even heftier than that." Said Ballard.

On Oahu, the Honolulu Zoo was closed for the day due to the wet weather....

That accumulation of water vapor creating a structure over Hawaii is new. It is extremely rare.

1 May 2017
1930.18z
UNISYS Water Vapor GOES West Satellite (click here for 12 hour loop - thank you)

April 30, 2017
By Jobeth Devera

...And on Maui, (click here) the torrential rain left parts of South Kihei Road underwater near the Maui Lu Resort. 

A landslide covered Kahekili Highway near mile marker 11 and crews were out in the rain over on the east side near Kaupo fixing a large sinkhole.

At Kaupo Gap, Piilani Highway remains closed due to water flowing over the road....

May 1, 2017
By Kelly Simek

The National Weather Service (click here) has issued a flood advisory for Hawaii Island until 8:30 a.m. Monday.

At 5:25 a.m., the radar showed showers and thunderstorms streaming over the Big Island from the southeast, affecting the area from near South Point to Cape Kumukahi to Hilo.

Additional heavy showers are poised to move ashore through the morning. Rainfall rates between one and two inches per hour can be expected in the heavier showers.

Locations in the advisory include but are not limited to Hilo, Kailua-Kona, Hawaiian Paradise Park, Captain Cook, Honokaa, Paauilo, Naalehu, Orchidlands Estates, Pepeekeo, Kawa Flats, Pahoa and Pohakuloa Camp.


Stay away from streams, drainage ditches and low lying areas prone to flooding. Rainfall and runoff will also cause hazardous driving conditions due to ponding, reduced visibility and poor braking action.

Do not cross fast flowing or rising water in your vehicle, or on foot

This advisory may need to be extended beyond 8:30 a.m. if heavy rain persists.

Tornado season officially starts June 1, 2017. There is a shift east of the density in the number of tornadoes.

The USA House is suppose to be passing a health care bill. There will be something to read.

Seattle, Washington passed a $15.00 minimum wage in 2014. The economy has never been better.

June 2, 2014

By Lynn Thompson and Amy Martinez

The Seattle City Council (click here) unanimously approved a $15 minimum wage Monday, giving its lowest-paid workers a path over the next seven years to the nation’s highest hourly pay.

The outcome was not in doubt as a progressive mayor and City Council throughout the spring vowed to address the national trend of rising income inequality and a city that has become increasingly unaffordable for many of its residents....

Seattle, Washington wasn't going to take chances. They are followed in their higher minimum wage by "The University of Washington" to report on "how things are going."

...Jobs: (click here)
Overall, the Seattle labor market was exceptionally strong over the 18 months from mid- 2014 to the end of 2015.
Seattle’s job growth rate tripled the national average between mid-2014 and late 2015.
This job growth rate outpaced Seattle’s own robust performance in recent years.
Surrounding portions of King County also had a very good year; the boom appears to fade with geographic distance.
 Job growth is clearly driven by increased opportunities for higher-wage workers, but businesses relying on low-wage labor showed better-than-average growth as well.
For businesses that rely heavily on low-wage labor, our estimates of the impact of the Ordinance on the number of persistent jobs are small and sensitive to modeling choices. Our estimates of the impact of the Ordinance on hours per employee more consistently indicate a reduction of roughly one hour per week.
Fewer hours per employee could reflect higher turnover rather than cutbacks in staffing.
Reductions in hours are consistent with the experiences of low-wage workers...

There is every reason to believe increasing the minimum wage RETURNS quality of life to Americans, increase their opportunities in housing and recreational time in movie theaters, parks and picnics and sports events, including sports events of their children.

One of the most devastating effects of 2008 was the instability of neighborhoods. REBUILD and continue to grow the local economy. Local economies REACT FIRST to increased income in a neighborhood. Local economies are vital, provide stability and encourage quality of life. Local economies have a real stake in the game.

Congratulations, Seattle!                        

"Morning Papers"

The Rooster 

"Okeydoke"

What was the reason for the $15 minimum wage?

Quality of life? 

Yes, happy Americans do better in life. They have more time of their own to pursue education, marriage and more quality time with the family that go ON VACATION.

But, what was the reason for the $15.00 minimum wage economically?

Wall Street wants to know, right? Wall Street says it will cost jobs. 

A $15.00 minimum wage will NOT cause job cuts, UNLESS, the CEO is looking for a quick fix for his BONUS CHECK. Got that. Right?

Okay. Does a $15.00 minimum wage in ACTUALITY cause SHRINKAGE of the economy? 

No, the economy experiencing higher minimum wages will EXPAND. It takes the PROFIT MARGIN of any CEO to STOCKHOLDERS and put it all back into circulation in the local economy. Right? What does that mean in the long run? It means a more vibrant economy with low unemployment, happy people expanding their QUALITY OF LIFE and SPENDING MONEY on the aspects of life they could not reach before.

Does it help housing? You know the place where Americans pack away EQUITY for their asset balance for RETIREMENT.

The rule of thumb is that prices in houses go up with demand. 

March 28, 2017
By Mike Rosenberg

For the fifth straight month, (click here) Greater Seattle has registered the sharpest home-price increases of any major market in the country, as home costs soared at their fastest pace in three years.

The typical price of a home across King, Snohomish and Pierce counties rose 11.3 percent in January compared to a year prior, according to the monthly Case-Shiller home price index, released Tuesday....

Seattle is into the beginnings of the $15.00 minimum wage and the housing market is feeling the increased demand. My guess is two income families are ready to move out of those apartments and into their own homes where EDUCATION of the children can be garnered with participation in their local Board of Education.

Is being involved in local government where decision makers effect the education of children a QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUE? Yes, it is. Americans like to feel their tax dollars are working for them and local involvement is vital to that peace of mind.