Tornadoes in Chicago yesterday have arrived with warnings in New York today.

Staff report

11:12 a.m. CDT, July 2, 2014

About 80,000 customers (click here) remain without power from Monday's violent storms, most of them in the hardest hit south suburbs where some residents may not see electricity restored until Friday, according to Commonwealth Edison.

As of 10 a.m., 78,000 customers to the south of Chicago were still without power, ComEd said.  About 2,100 customers in Chicago were affected by outages, 150 to the north and 960 to the west....

This was the required staffing of the US Embassy in Iraq as of 2012 AFTER US troops ended their occupation.

As of early July, (click here) according to DoS, 15,007 personnel were supporting the U.S. Mission in Iraq:

•  1,235 U.S. government civilian employees (includes full-time and temporary government employees and personal-services contractors)
•  13,772 contractor personnel (U.S., Iraqi, and third-country nationals), 5,737 of whom were providing security services

There are growing reasons to end the presence of any US military personnel. Contractors are leaving as any allies have evacuated already.

June 18, 2014

ExxonMobil (click here) has carried out a "major evacuation,'' and BP had evacuated 20 percent of its staff, the head of Iraq's state-run South Oil Company said Wednesday.

Dhiya Jaffar also said ENI, Schlumberger, Weatherford and Baker Hughes had no plans to evacuate staff from Iraq following the lightning advance of Sunni militants through the country. The companies, which are based in southern Iraq where the government is still in firm control, were not immediately available for comment.

"This message is not satisfactory for us. We are not convinced the work should not be done remotely. They should be here on the ground,'' Jaffar told Reuters.

"I assure the companies that the current developments in the country have not affected and will not affect in anyway the operations in the south,'' he said, adding that the export level for June will be 2.7 million barrels per day.

CNBC could not immediately confirm the evacuations....

July 1, 2014
Indian government (click here) flies back citizens from Najaf, Karbala and Baghdad as evacuations continue from war-torn region. Efforts on to secure release of 39 abductees.

As many as 94 Indians left Iraq on Monday after a "pro-active approach" initiated by the Indian officials there that would see nearly 600 nationals leaving the war-torn country to safety this week. 

Indian officials in Iraq are reaching out to fellow-countrymen themselves, and are busy facilitating the paperwork and ticketing for those who need it to enable them to fly back home, a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson said. 

"The facilitation of Indian nationals in Iraq in areas which are not in conflict zones is now underway," the spokesperson said, adding that special mobile teams are reaching out to residences of Indians in Najaf, Karbala, Basra and Baghdad advising them to leave the country. ...

I am concerned for Belhaven, NC with the closure of their hospital and the nearest being 40 miles away. Helicopters don't fly in hurricanes.

July 14, 2014

0430z

UNISYS Water Vapor Satellite of the North and West Hemisphere

From twin tornadoes to dual coastal hurricanes. 

Pacific storms have been spinning for a few days already. The trend is for one storm to begin immediately after another dissipates. There have already been two Cat 4 storms in the Pacific. Currently the only active storm in the eastern Pacific is Tropical Storm Douglas.

The first storm of the Atlantic season could cause problems exactly where a hospital has been closed. This is going to be a challenge for that community. I would not be surprised if Tropical Storm Arthur can move more inland than currently expected. 

Arthur is a typical post 2005 storm, in that it manifested as a 'near shore' storm. There is a couple of things rapidly occurring. There is turbulence immediately offshore of North Carolina now. There is also a higher tropspheric storm in the center of the country over Kansas that has a high water vapor air mass immediately south of it. If it absorbs that water vapor it could fuel it's acceleration and provide a new vector to the current trajectory of the Atlantic storm. I am trying to dismiss that, but, if the Kansas vortex picks up velocity it could drag the Atlantic inshore as far as Charlotte to Ashville. The upper winds might change that, but, right now I would be remiss to disregard that potential.

July 2, 2014
1430z
UNISYS Water Vapor West and North Hemisphere (click here for 12 hour loop) 

With critical hospitals closing in North Carolina there needs to be a coalition to persuade the extremist state government to change their minds.

This is a study conducted by graduate students at Duke University who found it impossible to justify opposing the Medicaid expansion under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

...It is safe (click here) to say that the students who were attracted to this course were reflexively for the Medicaid expansion, and in many ways “didn’t get” how the state of North Carolina wasn’t undertaking the Medicaid expansion as part of the ACA. Most of them are not from North Carolina, and only came here to study. I tried to push them hard over the course of the semester to take seriously the opposition. They mostly still don’t get the opposition or think it is primarily based on opposition to President Obama, but they wrestled mightily to try and understand the perspective of opponents’, and to fashion what they understand to be a plausible way forward that they believe has given some ground.

I should note that these students did independent cost projections, and considered issues of crowd out and woodwork effects. This report represents thousands of a dollars worth of effort at any sort of market rate, especially that done after the final product turned in for the class.

In the spirit of inquiry, I invite my fellow North Carolinians are opposed to expansion, to come wrestle and reason together with these students in their nuanced pages....

There are a variety of communities across the state in need of and supporting the Medicaid expansion through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for North Carolina. 

North Carolina Justice is already on the 'distressed' hospitals. It is a human rights issue as well as an economic issue. The communities facing down very dangerous circumstances have allies they have not realized or explored.

TAKE BACK OUR TAX DOLLARS (click here)

$891,477,189.81

Since January 1, 2014, North Carolina has rejected $4.9 million per day that would provide coverage to 500,058 uninsured people. We can make a better choice.

UNC Chapel Hill Hospital shoulders the burden for a large population of "Charity Care." It is time the dollars rightfully set aside for these large institutions and especially for the rural communities find a way to connect and more the state legislature out of their political rhetoric and into accepting desperately need funds for citizens across the state.

March 21, 2014

Greensboro City Council (click here) members approved a resolution Tuesday night supporting the expansion of Medicaid in the state of North Carolina. It passed 7 to 2 with council members Zack Matheny and Tony Wilkins voting no.

City Council members are asking N.C. Governor Pat McCrory and the General Assembly to reconsider a previous decision not to expand Medicaid benefits under the Affordable Care Act Law. The League of Women Voters of the Piedmont Triad, a Greensboro grassroots organization, held a press conference prior to the Greensboro City Council’s Tuesday night meeting urging council to support the resolution for Medicaid expansion.

“Every citizen deserves affordable healthcare. It’s the just and right thing to do,” said Willie Taylor, League of Women Voters co-president. Under the Affordable Care Act, states could opt to accept additional federal funds to be able to offer Medicaid insurance to more low-income citizens than the current model allows. The federal government would pick up the full cost of the coverage for three years and 90 percent or more in future years.

Proponents argued that it was a moral, ethical and financially good decision. Andrew Brod, a University of North Carolina at Greensboro economist noted that studies have shown the economic benefit to North Carolina expanding Medicaid benefits. “We know that catastrophic medical expenses account for high stress in households. Medicaid expansion is a way the Affordable Care Act helps alleviate that stress from high medical expenses in households. North Carolina taxpayers are paying for this in their roles as federal taxpayers. Why not get some of the benefit from it,” said Brod.McCrory and the General Assembly decided against expanding the state Medicaid program last year, citing concerns about the program’s operation and efficiency.... 

There are six major trauma centers in North Carolina. The role of the other hospitals, especially the rural community hospitals are to stabilize any patient and ready them for transport. The entire nation witnessed the miracle performed in Boston during that horrible day. But, lives were saved because of the quick action of the emergency teams and their ability to transport them quickly to a trauma center. Location of a hospital is vital to saving lives.

NC Justice needs to file a class action suit against the McCrory government to over rule the poor political agenda of the current administration. I know this is a well worn path, but, Former Senator Edwards was a fighter for the second America. I don't know if he would agree to advise the best approach, but, it would not hurt to ask.

By Michael Abramowitz 
The Daily Reflector
Monday, November 25, 2013

Demonstrators (click here) will hold a rally and prayer vigil in Greenville today to protest a decision by Vidant Health System to close Pungo Vidant Hospital in Belhaven.

The State Conference of the NAACP said it will join residents for the protest at 5 p.m. at the corner of Memorial Drive and Stantonsburg Road near Vidant's headquarters.

NAACP leader William J. Barber, Mayor Adam O'Neal of Belhaven and others will address issues raised by Vidant's decision to close facilities they say serve more than 25,000 people in Hyde and Beaufort Counties.

For the complete article, please pick up a copy of The Daily Reflector. Current home delivery and electronic edition subscribers may log in to access this article at no charge. To become a subscriber, please click here or contact Customer Service at (252) 329-9505.

"The USA bears a lot of the blame for the problems in Iraq." Really?

They are hatful people to jeopardize children like that.

Murrieta Station

25762 Madison Avenue
Murrieta, California 92592
(951) 816-3000

Area of Responsibility
The Murrieta Station is responsible for an operational area covering 3,300 square miles and maintains one full-time checkpoint on Interstate 15 approximately two miles south of town, a secondary checkpoint on south Highway 79 at Oak Grove, California, and several mobile checkpoints throughout its area of responsibility.

The Murrieta station supports an active Community Relations unit.

For more information about the San Diego Border Patrol Sector, please check our General Information section.

With the rate these refugees are coming across the USA border those buses cannot simply return them to detainment centers. It is going to be a human rights issue before too much longer, if it isn't already.

Tuesday, July 1, 2014 - Updated at 3:32 p.m.

Associated Press

Three buses containing migrants bound for a U.S. Border Patrol facility in Murrieta were turned back after protesters blocked the road Tuesday afternoon.

Approximately 100 to 150 people — some holding signs stating “No New Taxes, No New Illegals” and “America Has Been Invaded” — stood in the road in front of the buses that were filled with immigrants and their children who had entered the United States illegally.

After more than 10 minutes, the buses backed away. They headed south on Interstate 15 into San Diego County, according to aerial video on CBS8.com.

A Border Patrol union representative told KPBS that a “Plan B” site in the San Diego sector had been picked as a secondary destination....

If it can be safely done, President Obama needs to take a the President's helicopter for a ride along the USA border and talk to the nation about what can be done and what can be done. The fence is $23 million US per mile and some of it is buried under shifting sand. 

There is no way a metal or wood fence is going to hold up when it is stuck in sand. The people of the country have to realize these are refugees and not illegal immigrants and have nothing to do with immigration matters. These are children. It is time to talk to the country about this and explain why is may be necessary to ask the California National Guard to help.

1/22/2012

The California Army National Guard (click here) is  now offering a variety of great military careers that may translate to jobs in the civilian sectors. After a slow and long California National Guard Recruiting effort in 2011, new opportunities have opened up for a vast number of career fields such as Transportation, Engineers, Military Police, Communication, Logistics, Mechanics and many more. Although our entry requirements remain strict, we at times have the opportunity to work with GED graduates, an ASVAB AFQT total score of 31 or above, and if you dropped out of HS with only a few credits needed, we can get you into our Patriot Academy program. My office services the Hemet, Temecula, Murrieta, Winchester, Sun City and Meniffee Valleys. Please contact me at my cell 760 672-4384 or email me at Andres.Viveros@us.army.mil or request information through this site on my home page....

Confrontation is what the right wing wants. They'll have their cattle rustlers at the boarder before too much longer. Something has to be done, the flow of people isn't stopping. If President Obama needs advice about refugees, Jordan can provide plenty.

The only other possibility is to keep their movement within federal military bases, close the bases to traffic and fly them in and out with planes.

These demonstrations are completely political. They want President Obama to be hated by the country and they are doing their level best to make that happen. This is not about inappropriate handling of people and insecurity within the country. This is about politics. These are probably the same folks that were putting up border fence some time ago.

They are the anti-government individuals that can carry out life better than any government can.

Break out the riot gear, #Occupy wasn't spared any confrontation.

I'll put it this way. My 79 year old mother stated, "It is getting scary for the way people are behaving these days."

Welcome to the North Carolina Education Lottery

The act created (click here) the 9-member North Carolina Lottery Commission to initiate, supervise, and administer the education lottery. The Commission was appointed in September 2005, with Dr. Charles Sanders of Durham as its first chair and its initial meeting was held on October 6, 2005. On November 17, 2005, the Commission hired Thomas N. Shaheen as Executive Director. Shaheen served as Executive Director from December 5, 2005 through September 17, 2010. Following his resignation, Alice Garland was appointed by the NCEL Commission as Executive Director on January 19, 2011. Key staff members and their areas of responsibility include:

The operative word is lottery. This gaming in North Carolina was to be dedicated to raising monies for the public school system in the state. I have said it over and over, the courts in NC are corrupt.

No one receives just until appealed to the 4th Circuit in Virginia. (click here)

May 21, 2014
By Gregory Malhoit

Without explanation, the N.C. Supreme Court (click here) has given a green light to legislators and the governor to move forward with implementing North Carolina’s school voucher program. But before lawmakers rush to write a $10 million check that will end up in the coffers of private, mainly religious, schools, they should use the short legislative session to take a fresh look at how the law will actually be implemented come August.

The transfer of public tax dollars to private religious schools touches bedrock principles of religious freedom found in the First Amendment. Freedom of religion is central to our identity as a free people. Yet the right to religious liberty is not secure when the government becomes intertwined with religion. And when state government uses tax dollars intended to benefit all citizens to indoctrinate children in religious belief, the wall between church and state is severely breached....

There were over 5550 applications for the voucher program and only 2400 will receive them. The others will have to attend UNDERFUNDED public schools while the Education Lottery is being used inappropriately.

June 28, 2014
By Marquita Brown
News and Record

GREENSBORO — Almost 200 Guilford County families (click here) learned this week that they will receive public money to use toward tuition for private schools.

Much of that money, which could be as much as $840,000 if each family receives the maximum voucher amount, likely will go toward the cost of attending religious schools.
Most applicants across the state identified their top choice of private and parochial schools. Of the area schools picked most often, only Greensboro Day School lacks a religious affiliation.
Greensboro Islamic Academy showed up as the top pick 170 times — more than any other private school in the state, according to figures from the N.C. State Education Assistance Authority, which handles the vouchers.
The high interest in using publicly funded vouchers at private religious schools will likely fuel controversy about the $10 million voucher program, which stemmed from 2013 legislation.
Leaders of traditional public school systems, including Guilford County, complain that the voucher program leeches money from the schools most students attend.

The state received 529 voucher applications from Guilford County. Of those, 196 received vouchers through a lottery, according to the Education Assistance Authority....

When is someone going to impeach McCrory and his right hand man Pope?

Where are the fines? Where is the EPA? The Good "Ole Boys are having a real difficult time protecting the lives of North Carolinians, yet alone fishery discharge to the ocean.

Jun 19, 2014, 4:43pm EDT

North Carolina 9th in the nation for toxic waste (click here)

Of 206 million pounds of toxic chemicals released into United States waterways in 2012, 8.8 million pounds of toxic chemicals were released into North Carolina’s waters.

That’s according to a report released by PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center, a nonprofit group focused on environmental protection and information. North Carolina ranks ninth for most amounts of toxins released in 2012 into waterways, followed by Ohio with 7.5 million pounds. Indiana has the most with 17.7 million pounds.

The report breaks down the chemicals into three categories; cancer-causing (of which North Carolina had 44,370 pounds released into waterways, ranking 11th in the nation), developmental toxins (of which North Carolina has 10,341 pounds released into waters, ranking 14 th in the nation), and reproductive toxins (of which North Carolina has 108,452 pounds released, and ranks ninth)....

There is one authority to help, it is the US EPA. Perhaps Senator Hagan out to just ask the waterways of North Carolina be considered either Superfund sites and/or Brownfield sites and help the helpless Governor with his problems.

Posted: Tuesday, July 1, 2014 1:03 pm

An attorney for Gov. Pat McCrory (click here) questioned whether a planned coal ash commission would violate the separation of powers in the state constitution.

Bob Stevens, general counsel for the governor, spoke during the public comment portion of the N.C. House environment committee this afternoon. The committee was reviewing the coal ash management bill approved the coal ash management bill approved by the Senate last week.

The legislation creates a politically-appointed committee to review coal ash pond cleanup plans. The majority of the board will be appointed by the General Assembly. Three members will be appointed by the governor....

Iraq will no longer have a sovereign authority.

Israel has maintained discreet military, intelligence and business ties with the Kurds since the 1960s. (AFP)

Agence France Presse, Jerusalem
Sunday, 29 June 2014

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (click here) asked the international community on Sunday to support Jordan in the fight against "Islamic extremism" and to back the independence of Iraq's Kurds.

"We need to support efforts by the international community to strengthen Jordan and support the aspirations of the Kurds for independence," Netanyahu said in a speech to the Institute of National Security Studies think-tank in Tel Aviv.

"I think it's our common interest to make sure that a moderate, stable regime like (Jordan) is able to defend itself."

His remarks follow reports in Israeli media that officials in Tel Aviv fear Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants may extend their control to areas of Jordan after seizing parts of Iraq in recent weeks....

Jordan has Israel's back. Literally. No Israeli leader will ignore a relationship with Jordan. Jordan also has clout with the Palestinians. The Jordan Queen is a Palestinian. I am sure the borders of Palestine is as important to Jordan as the borders of Israel. Israel and Jordan are very stable countries. The USA is a strong ally and lives in the Mediterranean Sea and Persian Gulf. The chances of extremists causing incredible problems is not likely. Not bragging, but, fact.

An Albar has a real shot at becoming an autonomous territory. Saudi Arabia has a very successful program to insure it's citizens' security. They actively find extremists in their country and seek them out to prevent deaths. If Saudi Arabia is able to assist An Albar as in the past, the chances of a peaceful region is possible. 

The invasion into Iraq provided 'the idea' the entire region is unstable and in need of the USA. That is not the case.

Monday, 30 June 2014
All eyes (click here) were on Jordan last week as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) made a run at the Hashemite Kingdom. There were concerns that ISIS’ momentum, plus sleeper cells and admirers of the terrorist group in eastern Jordan, would help to create a back door for the fighters to slip into the country. That plan by ISIS seemed to have failed for several reasons.

Fears were raised when rare pictures of several dozen alleged ISIS supporters were circulated widely on social media and news outlets, including the Washington Post. One picture showed the supporters holding aloft a sign reading “Order of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant-Maan, Jordan- Victory for the Islamic State-22 Shaaban (June) 1435 (2014),” Importantly, Jordanian tribes are loyal to King Abdullah II. Indeed there are sleepers in Zarqa and Maan, but in the past these individuals have been tracked, detained, released, and now living their lives according to Jordanian sources. But they are still being watched and monitored and hence sleepers or supporters of ISIS are being mitigated....

Finding "The Peace" in the Middle East requires more than the USA. It requires a global consensus to disarm any party involved with aggressions in the region. 

Senator Paul hasn't accessed the problems with simply withdrawing support for Palestine. He assumes that USA aid is important and vital. The Palestinians can easily turn to Russia and/or China or other global leaders for any help them need and they'll get it.

The only real way to end this conflict and begin the push to peace is for the United Nations' Security Council to draw up a resolve to define the borders of Israel and Palestine. When it comes to Israel the USA will always defeat anything the UN Security Council resolves. The Palestinians have tried to take problems up at the World Courts and nothing works. 

A Presidential candidate has to resolve to be a part of a 'good' resolution at the United Nations to draw the lines in the sand that defines the two nations of people. Will any candidate have that resolve? You've got to be joking. Money and politics and a populous understanding of 'Poor Israel.'

Rand Paul is not an isolationist.

By JUSTIN LOGAN

8/7/13 9:38 AM EDT

Remember (click here) when your older brothers and sisters used to prank you by warning about the monster under your bed? In a similar way, Washington’s war hawks are gearing up to scare you with another phantom devil: isolationism.

If you feel like you’ve already been hearing increasing warnings about isolationism, you’re right. Pundits, journalists, and now a whole new think-tank initiative are warning about this dangerous ideology....

The 'spin' labels need to stop. A dialogue will never occur if labels end the discussion before it starts. This is from the Jerusalem Post which obviously doesn't do anything except parrot USA politics.

May 6, 2014
By Carolina B. Glick
Republican Senator Rand Paul is an isolationist. (click here) This ought to make him a natural ally for appeasers like Steve Walt and John Mearshimer and the whole blame Israel first crowd.

And indeed, he has taken positions, like opposing additional sanctions on Iran that placed him in their camp.

But Paul is a mixed bag.

Last week, following the PLO’s unity deal with terrorist groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, Paul introduced the Stand With Israel Act. If it had passed into law, Paul’s act would have required the US to cut off all funding to the Palestinian Authority, including its security forces. The only way the administration could have wiggled out of the aid cutoff would have been by certifying that the PLO, Hamas and Islamic Jihad had effectively stopped being the PLO, Hamas and Islamic Jihad....

Paul hasn't got it right either. The settlements have to stop as well. So, the peace in Israel is not a one way street. Aid to either AGGRESSORS has to be addressed as well. While Israel obviously needs a steadfast military, it has to agree to the final borders of Palestine and settlements need to be withdrawn.

Currently, with Israel unwilling to agree to Palestinian borders, it's agenda of adding more and more settlements to it's sovereign territory there is no reason for Hamas to stop their rockets into Israel. I have noted before the settlements were the reason for Hamas rockets. Hamas rockets have successfully stopped the Israel invasion into Gaza. It has not stopped the Israel invasion into the West Bank, however. 

President Abbas is viewed as a weak leader because he has been completely unable to secure the borders to Palestine. Until Israel stops invading Palestine, there will never be a peace in the Middle East. The three murders are a perfect example of how Israel uses any reason to batter the Palestinians. The three murders define Israel's excuse to prevent a peace and settlement with the Palestinians. As long as Israel continues it's invasions into Palestinian Territories taking land away from them, the rockets won't stop and the problems with it's citizen security will never end and Hamas will demand the power of any authority in Palestine.

How does a murder investigation translate into air strikes on all of Palestinians?

Israeli soldiers keep guard near the West Bank city of Hebron July 1, 2014.
Credit: Reuters/Mussa Qawasma 

(Reuters) - Israel (click here) bombed dozens of sites in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, striking at Hamas after finding the bodies of three missing teenagers whose abduction and killing it blames on the Palestinian Islamist group.

Israel's security cabinet, which held an emergency session late on Monday and was due to meet again on Tuesday, was split on the scope of further action in the coastal enclave and the occupied West Bank, officials said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had promised Hamas would pay after the discovery of the three Jewish seminary students' bodies under a pile of rocks near the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday....

I don't recall anyone declaring war to begin with and the deaths are tragic, but, since when does murder translate into military aggression?

What is this? Any excuse to kill Palestinians is a good excuse? Why more deaths? Three aren't enough?

Israel can't contact the Palestinian authority and demand assistance in finding the murderers and returning them to justice? 

Israel is out of line with civilized discourse when such tragedies happen. There will be no finding the murderers now. This is exactly why there will never be a peace in the Middle East. Israel has an agenda and any reason, no matter what it is, turns into a blood bath.

There were no authorizations from the Palestinian Authority to go out and kill Israelis or Americans. The official record states every time their is criminal behavior out of Gaza airstrikes will follow? Israel played right into the hands of those that want no peace. They played right into their hands. 

Israel has no idea what those young men were doing in Hebron after dark either.

It will never stop. 

...Instead, the military cited 18 Palestinian rockets launched against Israel from Gaza in the past two days, which Israeli officials have said Hamas carried out....

When aren't there rocket launches from Hamas? That is why there are interceptors in Israel.

..."The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms, this senseless act of terror against innocent youths," President Barack Obama said in a statement. "I also urge all parties to refrain from steps that could further destabilise the situation."...

It wasn't terrorism, it was murder.

Is there an emergency at the border? Did the President see it coming? Quite possibly.

President Obama asked Congress to act in regard to this emergency. And what did they say?

June 30, 2014
By Jim Kuhnhenn...Obama said (click here) he decided to bypass Congress after House speaker John Boehner informed him last week that the House would not vote on an immigration overhaul this year. A congressional leadership aide said Obama and Boehner spoke privately before an event last week at the white House honoring U.S. golfers who won last year's Presidents Cup,

Obama said there are enough Republicans and Democrats in the House to pass an immigration bill today, and says he would sign it....

It isn't as though the political right wing doesn't know this is occurring. Their media has been all over this as a reason to never pass immigration reform. It just goes to show the right wing is more interested in exploiting controversy than conduct the government's business. The politicians are running with their tail between their legs as fast they can. They are subservient to right wing media and if this isn't proof then I don't know what is. The people have control all right.

The people have no clue why this occurring, no clue about how to handle it, but, they have control to obstruct any response. There better now be human rights violations of this country because the right wing is crippled by it's electorate.

If workers aren't going to pay dues they don't representation. Just that simple.

I think the state being Illinois had something to do with it, too. It obviously is an attack against unions which we all know are the mainstay of Democratic Party strength. Justice Ginsberg is correct. This opens up the idea that corporations have rights that human beings have. Our democracy is rather wayward right now. It is anti-person and pro-corporation. The rise of the Plutocrats.

But, if employees are not members of the union they should never receive representation at the bargaining table and in their paychecks or otherwise. I don't see this hostile court decision effecting unions. People will quickly learn members are receiving raises and benefits they don't. There can literally be two classes of employees. Those with union representation and those without.

June 30, 2014
By Robert Barnes

The Supreme Court (click here) dealt a defeat to public employee unions Monday, saying that thousands of home health-care workers are not the kind of state employees who can be required to pay fees to cover a union’s cost of collective bargaining.

The court split 5 to 4 along ideological grounds in a case from Illinois. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said the state’s requirement of dues from those workers, who technically are employed under a government program for the persons they assist, violates workers’ rights to free speech.

To do otherwise, he wrote for the court’s other conservatives, “we would approve an unprecedented violation of the bedrock principle that, except perhaps in the rarest of circumstances, no person in this country may be compelled to subsidize speech by a third party that he or she does not wish to support.”...

What is wrong with these pictures of North Carolina Disabled Car Display Tags

The image to the left is the old display tag. Nothing wrong with it. Worked like a charm. It cost $5.00 every few years.

The display tag to the right is the new for the disabled. It is two piece. $5.00 for the paper tag which can be used independently if one doesn't mind it tearing the first time a mild breeze or air conditioner fan hits it. It is very flimsy. 

I said this new tag to the right is two pieces. The paper tag still costs $5.00 which goes to the state. But, the second piece is sold independently by the privately owned state registration centers. It costs $5.00. 

Today in North Carolina a handicapped individual is changed $10.00 where a good sturdy product was only $5.00.

This is the McCrory administration at work. It plays footsie with the private registration centers across the state, prints a paper tag that is completely worthless without the plastic covers. Yes, indeed, the elderly and handicapped in North Carolina are being taken for at least $5.00 each over the old cost of the Handicap Display Tag for parking in dedicated spots in public parking.

The reason the McCrory administration states this change was necessary was because the sturdy plastic tags hook would break off and it would not hang on the mirror anymore.

I don't know of one having that malady. My mother's old tag is still sturdy and in the glove compartment.

This is exploitation of every aspect of a person's life for profit. It is corruption. The answer to those that broke the old stand-by is to offer a plastic cover to place the old one in if it malfunctioned. Of have the state actually take responsibility for a defective product and replace it at any private DMV across the state free of charge.

This is Republicans at work. It doesn't matter whom you are, handicapped or not, if there is a way at making a buck, you can count on handing over the money. 

Democrats in North Carolina should be holding this example of greed in front of the public to show the level of indifference and poor judgement the Republicans are using. The Republicans are not trustworthy. With this state service alone they have doubled the cost in a covert manner. What do the disabled say? "I suppose it was necessary for some people, so we all had to pay the price." Excuse me? It wasn't necessary for any in North Carolina. This pure unadulterated corruption. 

It is religious zealotry.

If a private company is going to discriminate along religious preference of the owners it is just another form of corporate welfare.

The company can't even get out of it's own way to hire the general public and pay for birth control it's employees need. 

It is nonsense.

A corporate 'clear conscience' is overbearing and oppressive. The CEO does not live the lives of it's employees. It is crazy. It's zealotry. It also cuts the employer's costs. Corporate welfare.

The evangelicals can go to countries best served by oppression like Russia where gays are considered non-citizens. They have no rights to live their lives as they choose. They have no freedoms to be who they are. In all honesty, when the intolerance in Russia manifested along religious lines I was astounded. I did not expect a communist nation to take up the mantel of religious zealotry.

It is not the responsibility of religion to IMPOSE standards of living on citizens. Religion has it's responsibility as a counselor to it's members. Membership in most religions is a cognitive choice. Faith is viewed as the reward structure as taught by clergy of most religions without exception. But, this is a decision by the Supreme Court that brings government imposition on non-believers. Employees are not members of a faith in the case of multi-billion dollar corporations.

This 'practice' is discriminatory along gender lines as well. Do these companies employ the LGBT community? Do they provide a hostile workplace for their employees? It seems me if they don't discriminate against other religious dogma they should not discriminate against women. The reason this is being pursued is not that they adhere to christian directives, it is about profits.

I sincerely believe this is a slippery slope to undermining our democracy. 2008 saw the loss of large amounts of companies. They were replaced by industries like Hobby Lobby and Koch. These private corporations are global companies and impose a value system that it far to ridge to accommodate the varied values of Americans. It is a problem.

I really think this Hobby Lobby decision needs to be reviewed for many reasons, including the fact Supreme Court Justices, such as Alito are imposing personal preference over democratic values.

Hobby Lobby practices religious bigotry. It is called a private company because it does not issue stocks. Another Koch Industries oppressor.

Hobby Lobby is one of those private industry businesses, that really isn't a private company. It has sales of $3.3 billion annually and has 23,000 employees. Many of the employees are women. 

Hobby Lobby is ranked as 135th by Forbes as a privately owned company. (click here)

The decision against women in the case of Hobby Lobby continues to enforce right wing extremism. There will be other companies to follow simply because it cuts the expense of health care insurance to the company.

David Green is the CEO and has a personal value of $5.1 billion. (click here)

Boycott companies that practice religious bigotry. He is an evangelical that spreads hate across the globe. This international ministries bring political pressures in countries placing human beings in the path of HIV and unwanted pregnancy. This decision will continue to victimize women on many fronts. This makes the women working for Hobby Lobby second class citizens.

...The arts and crafts retailer (click here) now has 555 locations across the country, all of which are closed on Sundays. Green is a big contributor to evangelical education, giving $10.5 million to Jerry Falwell's Liberty University in 2004 and bailing out Oral Robert University in 2007 with $70 million. He has also put nearly 1.4 billion copies of gospel literature in homes in more than 100 countries, mostly in Africa and Asia. He joined the Giving Pledge in 2010.

Private industry status is being exploited for political power. They seek to use their wealth to conduct the spread of their form of religion and morality. It foments hatred and intolerance. The evangelicals are dangerous to any peace initiative and rely ONLY on their faith to solve problems. This is an issue. How can a company with incomes of $3.3 billion, a CEO with a net worth of $5.1 billion and hires 23,000 people be considered exempt from rules governing the public companies.

Hobby Lobby and the other private companies claiming this status are owned by a family, but, hire strangers. There is an obligation to those outside the family they hire in regards to discriminatory practices. This is religious discrimination and is bigotry. These companies are not sincerely private companies when they involve the employment of strangers with different values. Their claim to being part of the American fabric is that they give people jobs. They do. But, they do it as the integrity of the people they hire.

It tracks that Alito wrote the majority opinion. It is probably the only opinions he is capable of writing. Those opinions that hate democratic values.

The court decision isn't really conclusive. I am sure there are legislative measures that can be taken to remove the discriminatory practices from such a large, global corporation.