This Blog is created to stress the importance of Peace as an environmental directive. “I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” – Harry Truman
(I receive no compensation from any entry on this blog.)
There is no moral content in the violence of Mother's Day in New Orleans. It was not just a single person acting out in anger composing that immorality. It was a nation that permits it all. No one's rights are violated with a background check law. It is a method to reduce the incidence of these events while making a strong statement we are all concerned the tone in the country has been less vigilant than it should have been.
By Andrew Rafferty and Daniel Arkin, NBC News
New Orleans police (click here) have identified a 19-year-old man as a suspect in the Mother’s Day shooting that wounded 19 people marching in a parade.
New Orleans Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas said at a press conference late Monday that an arrest warrant has been issued for Akein Scott. He was positively identified by more than one person, Serpas said.
Authorities searched three different addresses Monday night but were unable to find Scott, NBC New Orleans affiliate WDSU reported.
“We will be looking for Akein Scott for the rest of the night and tomorrow until we find him, and I would strongly recommend that Akein turn himself in,” said Serpas....
Snyder won't 'bail out' the school system because it would create precedent to bailout the school where there are emergency managers now. Snyder rather assign another emergency manager than have the students finish the school year. Snyder is actively defunding education in Michigan, including university education. The state legislature has just added $50 million to the Michigan Rainy Day Fund to further deprive education of needed funding. Apr. 27, 2013 ...Business Leaders for Michigan, (click here)which includes executives at prominent Michigan companies, has called for annual $100 million funding increases to help reverse a roughly one-third cut to its support for higher education in the past decade. “What this budget really represents is a dismantlement of public schools and the assurance that our college graduates will suffer from a lifetime of debt,” Sen. Morris Hood III, D-Detroit, said Thursday after voting against the Senate’s university budget. House Democrats have proposed pulling $158 million from savings as part of a plan to reinstate individuals’ tax exemptions and credits eliminated by Republicans, raise funding for education and local governments, and keep movie-making incentives intact.... The Michigan Rainy Day fund has been used to bailout the State's cities and schools under the previous governor. But, Snyder wants to defund public education at all levels so he and the Republican Congress skim off monies into the Rainy Day Fund to create a shortage in funding in the state budget. The rainy day fund has absolutely nothing to do with the state's financial rating. The rating is based on the GDP, not a savings account. Snyder is a piece of work. He has recently authorized the lumbering of the state's forests and he is over riding a ballot initiative to prevent a hunt for wolves in the state. The state legislature and Snyder has systematically looked into any electorate referendum and legislate it's failure before it makes the ballot. This is their reaction to the ballot initiative that passed in November 2012 to end the emergency manager provision in the state. He is a dictator. He and his Republican House buddies. (U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan (click here) and Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder read “The Rainbow Fish” book to a pre-kindergarten class at Thirkell Elementary School in Detroit on Monday, May 6, 2013. (AP Photo/Detroit News, David Coates) Snyder's "My Pet Goat" is "The Rainbow Fish." Crooked politician - yes, Governor - no. Snyder goes fishing for Wall Streets profits.
But, deaths are not associated with cooked foods are they? I thought most of the H7N9 infections were from live animals and not cooked or processed foods. Did I get that wrong? I mean it is better for the people to be cautious and maybe it is better to be safe than sorry, but, I don't remember seeing a link to processed or cooked foods. Does the virus die when heated? SHANGHAI, MAY 13 Sales of fast food giant KFC (click here) in China slumped an estimated 36 per cent last month, according to parent Yum! Brands, as consumers shunned chicken due to the H7N9 bird flu outbreak in humans. For Yum overall, which includes other restaurant chains such as Pizza Hut, Chinese same-store sales — a measure of turnover in established outlets — fell an estimated 29 per cent in April, according to an exchange filing on Friday. An outbreak of H7N9 avian influenza, found in humans for the first time, has killed 35 people in China since the government began reporting figures in late March, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission. The ministry today said that four new deaths had occurred in the past week. Chinese cities have shut live poultry markets in response to the outbreak. “Beginning the first week of April, publicity surrounding avian flu in China has had a significant, negative impact on KFC sales,” Yum said....
A scientist named Suresh Mittal, a professor of comparative pathobiology in Purdue's College of Veterinary Medicine, has created a novel immunization procedure that includes genes from multiple strains of the virus and offers protection that could continue to exist through different mutations. "Fortunately, avian influenza in humans tends to replicate deep in the lungs where it can't easily get out through coughing. However, the more people this virus infects, the more chances it has to evolve. It is important to keep a close watch on this outbreak."
This was part of a statement about some kind of gun crime online, but, the ad is the ad. I don't really care what it was suppose to represent it is immoral and simply wrong. This belongs nowhere in an advertisement anywhere in the media. I hope it is criminal to display such atrocities. I doubt it is, Palin got away with her crosshairs. But, I don't care what kind of image is placed in gun crosshairs it needs to be criminal to do it. That picture is seriously disturbed content.
``Interarms Mark X Viscount Bolt-Action Rifle
``Interarms Mark X Whitworth Bolt-Action Rifle
``Interarms Mini-Mark X Rifle(below)
``Interarms Whitworth Express Rifle
``Iver Johnson Model 5100A1 Long-Range Rifle
``KDF K15 American Bolt-Action Rifle
``Kenny Jarrett Bolt Action Rifle
``Kimber Bolt Action Rifles
``Krico Model 600 Bolt-Action Rifle
``Krico Model 700 Bolt-Action Rifles
``Magnum Research Mount Eagle Rifles(below-Mount Eagle (click here) is a gun distributor - this rifle was manufactured by SAKO of Finland-click here).
``Marlin Model XL7
``Marlin Model XL7C
``Marlin Model XL7L
``Marlin Model XL7W
``Marlin Model XS7(below)
``Marlin Model XS7C
``Marlin Model XS7Y
``Marlin XL-7/XS7 Bolt Action Rifles
``Mauser Model 66 Bolt-Action Rifle (below-sold online $1300.00
``McMillan Signature Super Varminter
``McMillan Signature Titanium Mountain Rifle
``McMillan Talon Safari Rifle
``McMillan Talon Sporter Rifle
``Merkel KR1 Bolt Action Rifle
``Midland 1500S Survivor Rifle
``Mossberg Model 100 ATR (All-Terrain Rifle)(below)
...I requested a test rifle in a new chambering for the 100ATR. This year the 7mm-08 joins the .243 and .308 in the short mechanism (the .270 and .30-06 are cataloged for the long receiver). You can pick a walnut stock or a synthetic with one of four finishes: black, Mossy Oak Brush or Breakup Infinity, and Realtree AP. You can get a black-synthetic rifle with iron sights. The walnut stock is available only in the short-action version. It hikes weight about four ounces, to seven pounds, or the heft of a synthetic-stock long-action rifle. Mossberg lists both long and short models in packages with 3-9×40 scopes....
``Navy Arms TU-33/40 Carbine
``Nosler Model 48 Varmint Rifle
``Parker Hale Bolt Action Rifles
``Parker-Hale Model 81 Classic African Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 81 Classic Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 1000 Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 1100 Lightweight Rifle(below)
``Parker-Hale Model 1100M African Magnum
``Parker-Hale Model 1200 Super Clip Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 1200 Super Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 1300C Scout Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 2100 Midland Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 2700 Lightweight Rifle
``Parker-Hale Model 2800 Midland Rifle ``Remington 700 ADL Bolt-Action Rifle(below)
``Remington 700 BDL Bolt-Action Rifle
``Remington 700 BDL European Bolt-Action Rifle
``Remington 700 BDL Left Hand
``Remington 700 BDL SS Rifle
``Remington 700 BDL Varmint Special
``Remington 700 Camo Synthetic Rifle
``Remington 700 Classic Rifle
``Remington 700 Custom KS Mountain Rifle
``Remington 700 Mountain Rifle
``Remington 700 MTRSS Rifle
``Remington 700 Safari
``Remington 700 Stainless Synthetic Rifle
``Remington 700 Varmint Synthetic Rifle
More tomorrow - thank you your interest.
A Syrian boy sits in the rubble of house which was destroyed during a military operation by the Syrian pro-Assad army in April in the town of Taftanaz, Syria. June 07, 2012 6:17 PM By Deborah Amos ..."The army controls in daylight, (click here) the Free Syrian Army controls the night," as one activist explained.... Exactly. Russia and The West is finally getting on the same page about Syria. It looks hopeful. Prime Minister Cameron stated there has to be a realization there is no military victory in Syria. It will be best to bring all the parties to negotiations. This is mostly ethnic violence.
13 May 2013Last updated at 14:41 ET
The US and the UK (click here) say they will work to strengthen the moderate opposition in Syria and create a transitional body to replace President Bashar al-Assad.
US President Barack Obama said such a body would be be the goal of a meeting in Geneva in "the coming weeks".
The US recently won Russian support for the conference.
British Prime Minister David Cameron, in Washington for talks, said there was an "urgent window of opportunity before the worst fears are realised" in Syria.
Since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's rule began more than two years ago, at least 70,000 people are believed to have been killed and more than 1.2 million are living outside Syria as refugees.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at the weekend that more than 80,000 people had died, a figure cited by Mr Cameron on Monday....
Russia wants a benevolence for the Syrian people and has stated through this entire episode in the Middle East there needs to be talks. It looks as though it will happen. With Russia seeking stability and The West supporting the opposition there should be good movement.
I think Europe is grasping at straws rather than confronting their wayward engagement of austerity. The UK has brought about a great deal of success by bolstering the Euro. I doubt breaking up that relationship would be a good idea right now. I question what is driving that focus. Page last updated at 13:43 GMT, Monday, 13 May 2013 14:43 UK By Tom Martienssen Newsbeat reporter
Tory MPs could force a Commons vote on an EU referendum on Wednesday with former defence secretary Michael Portillo calling for the UK to leave the EU.
David Cameron has accused the group of Conservatives of "throwing in the towel" before negotiations have even started.
What would leaving the EU mean in reality?...
...Last year the UK handed more than 11bn euros (£9bn) to the EU and received about 6.5bn euros (£5.5bn) back - aimed mainly at helping British farms.
However, if the UK ever needed extra money then the amount we gave and received would change.
Leaving Europe would mean that security would be gone....
Currency isn't the problem with the economies of Europe. The currencies are a symptom of the economies and assets of a country. It is not the integrity of the sovereign state of the money supply that is the problem. I find myself wondering if The Fed's programs are adversely effecting global currencies, actually. I find myself thinking Secretary Jack Lew was meeting with Chairman Bernanke for a review of the European currencies.
* Weak retail sales for March keeps BoE easing bets alive* Rebounds in sterling will be sold into
By Anooja Debnath
LONDON, April 18 (Reuters) - Sterling recovered from early losses to rise against the dollar on Thursday but it remained vulnerable after date kept alive the prospects of further monetary easing by the Bank of England.
Retail sales for March fell broadly in line with expectations, keeping the jury out on whether poor domestic demand and consumer spending pushed the British economy into recession in the first quarter.
Markets were forecasting a 0.8 percent fall in retail sales in March due to the unusually cold weather, so a 0.7 percent drop did little to support the currency, which fell to $1.5223, not far from the day's low of $1.5218....
Scotland seeking independence from the UK would transfer their sovereign worth to the Euro. Unless Scotland was thinking about developing their own currency. But, the independence of Scotland has to be realized first before the currency could be decided.
The nation of 5 million will hold a referendum on September 18 next year to decide whether to split from the United Kingdom, at the instigation of the Scottish National Party that runs the country's devolved government.
Pro-independence campaigners want Scotland to keep sterling, at least in the early years of independence, and then to decide later whether to switch to its own currency.
But in a report on Tuesday, Britain's finance ministry said there was no clear case for the United Kingdom to agree to a formal currency union with an independent Scotland, which would have an economy of a similar size to New Zealand's.
"The economic rationale for the UK to agree to enter a formal sterling union with a separate state is not clear," said the report, which was prepared by non-partisan civil servants.
"The recent experience of the euro area has shown that it is extremely challenging to sustain a successful formal currency union without close fiscal integration and common arrangements for the resolution of banking sector difficulties," it added....
I think it is correct in that Scotland abandoning the Sterling would be negligible to the Brits. Scotland actually would have a leg up on any currency transfer because it have been solidly linked to the Sterling, a stable currency. So, there would be less problems for the Scots than say Spain when they were converting to the Euro. It looks as though Secretary Lew is assessing the global currency in relation to the overall picture of the USA. It is one thing to assess the currencies in relation to each other without prejudice of impact, but, Lew needs to have a pow-wow with Bernanki. Bernanki and Lew need to examine the effect of The Fed's policies on global currency and NONE of it should be planned adversity to any nation. But, they also need to discuss the issue of inflation, too. The Fed and the USA Treasury better have a darn good handle on where inflation will occur and when they have to counter it. The Brits and Europe have to stop their austerity measures. That isn't getting them anywhere. Europe and the Brits should not be blaming currency stability for their troubles, it is the other way around. The troubles they face effect their currencies. If the currencies are stable but delicate now is the time for Europe to begin reversing the austerity trend. I think austerity might have served a purpose for awhile for Europe, but, reversing austerity will better serve their countries and end the fluctuation in their currencies.
May 10, 2013 at 8:00 AM ET
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew (click here)told CNBC on Friday that the U.S. debt ceiling would not be reached until September, though he said it was not an excuse for Congress to relax.
"The debt limit will be reached in just a few days when it expires on May 18 but because of the cash flows we can predict that we will be okay until Labor Day," Lew told CNBC in an interview in London.
"People shouldn't relax, Congress should deal with this right away. The uncertainty caused by putting this off is not good. The anxiety caused to the U.S. and world economy by putting this off until the last minute is not good," Lew said on the sidelines of a meeting of G-7 finance ministers and central bank governors.
The two-day meeting, which began on Friday, is expected to address whether policymakers can do more to encourage a fragile global recovery .
Lew forecast that in the coming 12 months the global economy would continue its recovery but, he said, it required a global, concentrated effort.
"The economy is healing—certainly in the U.S., I think that there are many challenges ahead and in a meeting like this [G-7] one, it's an important time to ask the question what we can all do to create more growth and more jobs."... It was important for the USA to expand and stabilize it's economy. It is a huge global economy and a stable USA is a strong springboard for other nation's rebuilding. The USA's economy is doing better and the President has lead a valiant recovery. In only a few more years the USA will again have a national debt that is manageable. The USA had a stagnant economic content before the global economic collapse. The job growth was very sluggish. President Obama has moved mountains to increase small business opportunity while spurring infrastructure spending. He and his administration has done remarkable work. The EU and the Brits need to take their stand on reversing austerity. Reversing austerity will capture marginal growth and build on it. We know now the Middle Class of The West is the real economic engine to growth. The more currency in the hands of the Middle Class and the facilitating of the Poor to upward movement is the real picture for economic stability. The UK and Europe are in good position to harness that economic engine and begin to regrow their economies. At that point, the recovery of The West will be exponential as Europeans have more money to spend and grow their own cottage business industries. The US and Europe can then begin to trade and encourage tourism that will benefit the economies of each continent. Basically, it is time Europe to catch the tailwind of the recovering United States. It will begin to counter the drag on both continents economy.
It is going to be great. Shulman needs to go. He has an agenda. He was involved with the sale of the stock exchange and then slid into the position with the IRS. Now, the IRS is instituting the Affordable Care Act. Between he and Sebelius the law doesn't have a chance.
But, the GOP primaries should be very interesting, ya think? The IRS has the institution of the new law because of the tax penalty. That's a no brainer.
By LINDSEY BOERMA /
CBS NEWS/May 13, 2013, 6:00 AM
...An apology Friday (click here) by the IRS conceding the "inappropriate" practice of singling out groups with keywords like "Tea Party," "Patriot" and "9/12 Project" in their names to flag for heightened, typically burdensome, scrutiny is "not sufficient reparation for violating the constitutional rights of United States citizens," said Jenny Beth Martin, national coordinator for the Tea Party Patriots.
"The Tea Party Patriots rejects the apology from the Internal Revenue Service," Martin said in a statement. "The IRS lied. They lied before Congress in 2011, and they lied again [in the agency's apology]. We must know how many more lies they have been telling, and how high up the chain the cover-up goes."...
The lastest political rant from FOX is about the crash of a Navy Helicopter in Afghanistan in 2011. It is a back drop to the Massachusetts Senate race.
Posted: Tuesday, April 30, 2013 9:51 pm
...Gomez is a newcomer to politics. (click here) He's the son of Colombian immigrants and learned English in kindergarten. He became a Navy pilot and SEAL, earned an MBA at Harvard and launched a private equity career.
Kerry resigned from the Senate to become U.S. secretary of state....
Here again FOX has the families of the dead all revved up and screaming Anti-Obama as if the Commander and Chief was part of a conspiracy. Here we go again. FOX has a methodology that is very anti-government when it suits them. The helicopter crash is another issue like Benghazi and they are demanding hearings. I mean hearings about Secret Ops? Give me a break, that is a guaranteed CONSPIRACY theory to benefit elections.
...The Associated Press (click here)is reporting that a rocket attack took down the Chinook (probably a MH-47) , quoting an unnamed source in Washington D.C., but this has yet to be confirmed officially. The Taliban, of course, has taken credit, saying it shot down the helo during a special forces raid on a home.
For now, let's assume the Chinook was shot down, and by a rocket. Chinooks are American forces' preferred helicopters in Afghanistan because they are powerful enough fly over mountains while carrying a full complement of troops. They are also pretty tough; the only comparable loss to this one was a Chinook shot down in 2005. But Chinooks are at their most vulnerable while hovering in place during raids like the one this team is thought to have been conducting. They have to slow down to land or allow troops to rappel to the ground. However, it would be a very lucky shot to hit a moving Chinook with an RPG and they typically fly high to avoid such dangers as well as small arms fire....
This is where it gets really bizarre. According to FOX propaganda the helicopter was a Chinook and not a 'real' Seal Team helicopter. The families carry on about the fact there were six or seven Afghan soldiers changed out at the last minute which is counter to Seal Team policy. And they state there was no pre-fire laid down to insure the safety of the team. The pre-fire was not carried out because of concern for the Afghan people in the area.
At least one of the families are really angry and resent not receiving information to their questions. Now, supposedly the change in Afghan military compromised the mission, but, there were no soldiers killed by gun fire. The 38 people dead on the mission were killed in the crash that supposedly the Taliban succeeded. The complaints by the families don't track. This was not the first helicopter to crash or to be shot down in Afghanistan. Helicopters are always targets, that was true in other USA wars. Why this crash is receiving attention is because of the Seal Team status. In other words, this was the same unit that carried out the raid on the Osama bin Laden's compound and killed him. The families believe the commanders compromised the safety of the soldiers and this was retribution from within the Afghan forces. So, because FOX needs still another uptick to the Benghanzi hearings they are beginning this mess. There is no resolving this to the public. This was more than likely a training mission and that is something else, the families state these Americans should not have been training Afghans. Who is going to? ...Special Forces are expected to keep the pressure on the Taliban, working closely with Afghan forces to maintain control as U.S and Coalition troops depart. That means more raids, more targets and more reliance on Afghan competence—all of which add up to more special forces casualties.... The entire complaint by FOX is irresolvable. The rant is guaranteed to be still yet another conspiracy by the Obama Administration to hide facts and 'the truth.' The very fact FOX News is seeking 'the truth' reveals an election campaign to bring leverage. There is little to no truth at FOX. This might be a first though. It isn't enough they have made a fool of Issa, now they want more on their Ship of Fools. ...DevGru is an emblem of U.S. military power, known worldwide. This crash is incredibly demoralizing. Could an enemy have specifically targeted the U.S. special forces team that took down bin Laden? It's certainly possible. Just last week the Afghans arrested an Army officer for aiding Taliban suicide bombers through checkpoints, and doing so under employ by Pakistan.
Special forces are very selective on who they partner with, but any collaboration with Afghans opens up U.S. Forces to the threat of spying. Several Afghans were on board and were killed, but trust is in short supply in Afghanistan. Add in the fact that more sophisticated foreign intelligence agents are on the ground, with signals intelligence assets and deep pockets, and you have a recipe for a plot.... This stuff happens. These nations are conflicted over religious loyalty and that of their government. Where infidels exist there is a higher opportunity to disloyalty and the Taliban infiltrate the ranks. That is a problem in the Middle East. There is no loyalty to NATO or the USA within these countries when it comes to military engagements. The infiltration that occurs in Afghanistan in Green on Blue attacks is unprecedented. So, now the conspiracies by the Obama Administration is getting longer with every day of 'talk television and radio.' So far, going into 2014, it is Benghazi, the IRS and now Seal Team Six. We can only wait with bated breath to see what tomorrow brings from FOX. The President needs to reread his job description, it doesn't include spending hours on end with conspiracies against the people of the USA.
NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg (click here) is launching on a six-month mission to the International Space Station this month, so she's making sure to savor this Mother's Day with her 3-year-old son and her husband, who also happens to be an astronaut.
Nyberg and her husband, NASA astronaut Doug Hurley, are in Moscow for Mother's Day and she described the challenges of balancing life as astronaut and a mom to Parenting Magazine while counting down to a May 28 launch to the International Space Station.
Nyberg first flew in space in 2008, launching on the shuttle Discovery and spending two weeks at the space station. But that was before her son Jack, now a toddler, was born. Now she is preparing for her first long-duration mission in space, which can be tough for any parent, Nyberg said....
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