Guatemala was one of the countries that had children at the USA border this past year.

September 1, 2015
By Sofia Menchu


Guatemala's Congress (click here) on Tuesday voted unanimously to strip President Otto Perez of immunity, paving the way for prosecutors to charge him in an unprecedented graft scandal that has engulfed his government.
Perez, a 64-year-old retired general, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and has said he will not resign over a scandal that has sent thousands of protesters onto the streets and gutted his cabinet.
But in a vote in Congress on Tuesday, Perez faced a serious blow as all 132 lawmakers present voted to remove his immunity, just days before a presidential election to be held on Sunday....

No surprise. The corruption involves the drug cartels.

March 23, 2012 
By Catherine E. Shoichet 

The retired general (click here) said he would send troops into the streets to fight drug violence.

Analysts summed up his political platform with three words: law and order.

Now -- just two months after taking office -- the 61-year-old Guatemalan president is pushing a controversial proposal that has come under fire from U.S. officials and earned praise from people who were once his critics.

During a routine speech last month, Perez Molina slipped in a surprise announcement.

Last year's law-and-order candidate said he wanted to legalize drugs.

"What I have done is put the issue back on the table," Perez Molina told CNN en Español. "I think it is important for us to have other alternatives. ... We have to talk about decriminalization of the production, the transit and, of course, the consumption."

The proposal caught many Guatemalans off guard.

"Everyone was expecting him to copy the strategy of (Mexican President) Felipe Calderon and involve the military in fighting cartels," said Martin Rodriguez Pellecer, director of Plaza Publica, an investigative journalism and analysis website in Guatemala. "Then he made this surprise announcement ... without even his foreign minister knowing about it."...

Very sad situation in East Russia for beloved zoo animals.

Gay couples have a moral standard that is defined in marriage. The country needs to accept that reality and stop victimizing the community.

The attorney representing Ms. Kim Davis stated it is important to allow all forms of conscience to be honored and it was her right to be forthright in her expression of her conscience. He said nothing about the conscience of a gay couple longing to be married. What happened to that conscience? That moral conscience doesn't matter?

Her attorney expressed what is known as a couple standard. Somehow Ms. Davis' conscience sanctioned by god is more important than the moral conscience of gay couples longing to be married. Why is god absent in the morality of marriage for gay couples? Because Ms. Davis says it is?  

If a heterosexual couple that proclaimed to be atheists wanted a marriage license I sincerely think Ms. Davis would have an objection.  

September 1, 2015
By David Weigel

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) (click here) has given a mixed endorsement to a home state county clerk whose refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples has become national news.

"I think people who do stand up and are making a stand to say that they believe in something is an important part of the American way," Paul told Boston Herald Radio during a three-day campaign swing through the Northeast.

When asked about Rowan County, Kentucky clerk Kim Davis's ongoing refusal to issue licenses, in defiance of the Supreme Court's 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, Paul's campaign pointed to his Monday interview with the conservative Herald. The question was succinct, asking if Paul "back[ed] Kim Davis and her religious right" to defy the ruling. Paul's answer took him across the plains of legal theory before ending with the "making a stand" statement....

There are advocates within the Catholic faith that hold all people within their understanding of the family of God. They do so in defense of their presence on Earth and living a good and decent life no different than established standards. That point of view is often overlooked when examining the conscience of the church. This is not new since Pope Francis was first inaugurated. These advocates have sometimes suffered for their ideals.

September 1, 2015

...The 79-year-old (click here) said he had told the pope how he had recently blessed a divorced couple as well as a homosexual couple, saying "he listened, he is open to all those things. He said that to bless is to speak well of God to people."

Gaillot said he now devotes much of his time to helping and defending migrants and the pope, he said, told him "continue, what you do (for the downtrodden) is good".

Francis has been urging the Catholic Church to adopt a more compassionate approach to those considered to have sinned, such as divorced people who remarry or practising homosexuals.

On Tuesday he called on priests to pardon women who have abortions during the upcoming Jubilee year -- overruling hardline traditionalists within the Church in the process.

Gaillot, who courted controversy in the past by saying he was unable to judge women who had abortions or gay people -- a message echoed by Pope Francis in 2013 -- now largely uses the Internet to continue his defence of human rights. 

The point is a spiritual life takes all forms. It is the beauty of the USA. The USA would protect people like Bishop Jacques Gaillot to believe as he does. The USA allows for people to carry out their understanding of a spiritual life so long as it does not harm others. Peaceful practice of any religion and/or spirituality is accepted in the USA. The 'duties' of the state have to be homogenous to include all Americans not simply those a clerk might approve of within her limited understanding.

Ms. Davis does not belong in her current job. I would be rather surprised to find her job description included discriminating and upholding double standards. 

August 31, 2015
By KTUU staff and wire report

President Barack Obama (click here) today called for the U.S. and other Arctic nations to launch more aggressive, faster-paced efforts to combat climate change.
"We know that human activity is changing the climate. That is beyond dispute. Everything else is politics," Obama told the State Department-sponsored GLACIER conference.
The president drew a small cheer when he said those who dispute climate change are on a "shrinking island" of their own. 
"We are not moving fast enough. None of the nations represented here are moving fast enough," Obama said. "And let's be honest. There’s always been an argument against taking action. The notion is that this will curb our economic growth.”
Obama did not outline specific new programs or policies, saying only that he will introduce climate change-related measures in the coming days....

Actually, President Obama has put together a comprehensive program for the Arctic. (click here) One of the most important is an assessment to take place over the next five years.

September 1, 2015

...Launching a demonstration project for Arctic marine-biodiversity observing. This year, the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Network (AMBON) will launch the first of three sampling cruises (with others to launch in 2016 and 2017) as part of a five-year demonstration project. These cruises will gather a broad range of Arctic marine-biodiversity data, including bird and mammal observations, water-column analysis (temperature, salinity, chlorophyll-a extraction, nutrients, etc.), and information on microbes and small eukaryotic plankton, zooplankton, sediment cores, and fishes....

The problem about any of this is that it is still nowhere to be found in America media. I think the only newsprint I saw with a picture of the melting glacier was The Wall Street Journal. I appreciate that. 

Sometimes the news media doesn't completely understand a subject and only covers what they believe the public can digest. Perhaps the climate crisis and the warming of Earth is one of those subjects. I have a feeling though President Obama has a real grasp of the subject and can speak well to it.

I would not expect him to offer an assessment of a glacier's mass balance, but, the measurements would be something he would understand when reviewed with a glaciologist. President Obama is not intimidated by any aspect of science. He thrives when challenged with a subject important to the USA. When he states time is of the essence, he means it in a way that matters and should matter to everyone else. 

The Democrats need you. Come back.

End of discussion.

August 31, 2015
By Ken Dilanian

WASHINGTON

Experts in government secrecy law (click here) see almost no possibility of criminal action against Hillary Clinton or her top aides in connection with now-classified information sent over unsecure email while she was secretary of state, based on the public evidence thus far.

Some Republicans, including leading GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, have called Clinton's actions criminal and compared her situation to that of David Petraeus, the former CIA director who was prosecuted after giving top secret information to his paramour. Others have cited the case of another past CIA chief, John Deutch, who took highly classified material home....

This entire episode in American stupidity can be attributed to partisan politics played out with the help of media outlets. When are Americans going to realize their concern for their country is being exploited for commercial ratings and politics?

I don't remember getting a check in the mail for my opinion on Twitter. Stop being a twit and have respect for yourself and your opinion. Demand unbiased information before we actually have a person in office that can't handle the responsibility.

It is easy to tell where the gossip about Hillary Clinton began. The Democrats are discussing the issues, guess who doesn't care to discuss the issues? How convenient is it to bad mouth Hillary Clinton to attempt to alienate her supporters while not having to address the issues of the day. 

Most of the Republicans are running a 'default' campaign. If they can defeat the other candidates for nomination to the Republican Party by gossip of highly qualified Democrats without receiving criticism for their own policies they can make it all the way to the White House by default. The best gossiper will be president because he or she are able to carry out empty defamation of character. Is that really what Americans want? It seems to me Americans are WAITING for the answers to the problems the country face. How long are you going to wait?

Hillary Clinton needs to get on with her campaign, Americans have waited long enough.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/article32882508.html#storylink=cpy

Ms. Davis needs to be given her walking papers.

September 1, 2015
By AP

A county clerk in Kentucky (click here) who has invoked “God's authority” and is defying the U.S. Supreme Court by refusing to license same-sex marriages has been summoned along with her entire staff to explain to a federal judge why she should not face stiff fines or jail time.

U.S. District Judge David Bunning moved swiftly Tuesday after a lesbian couple asked him to find Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis in contempt. Davis told several couples and a crowd of supporters and protesters that her religious beliefs prevent her from sanctioning gay marriage, and then retreated again, closing her office door and blinds to the raucous scene outside....

I find it really odd the judge involved is calling her and the entire staff before the court. How is the entire office involved? Davis is in contempt of court. Is her other job being a pharmacist?

The details of what occurred seems sketchy. How does a season officer end up dead and his weapon gone?

September 1, 2015
By Amie Schaenzer

Meanwhile, (click here) the officer has been identified as Charles Joseph Gliniewicz, a 32-year veteran of the force who was married and had four children, a police source and family member told the Chicago Tribune. Gliniewicz went by the nickname “G.I. Joe.” 

Gliniewicz radioed police around 7:50 a.m. to tell them he was pursuing three suspects involved in some sort of “suspicious activity,” Lake County Sheriff’s Detective Chris Covelli told CBS Chicago. Police then lost radio contact with the officer.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found the Fox Lake police officer’s body in a marshy area near Route 12 and Sayton Road. His gun and other gear had been taken, according to the Chicago Tribune. Gliniewicz died at the scene....

Lake County is stated to be a majority of Latino with a 51 percent change in that population in 2010. There was an increase of 77 percent of Asians into the county in that same period of time. African Americans are the minority of citizens. Caucasian come in behind the Asians. The 2010 census states the median household income is $78,000 per year. 

Evidently, the officer was easily over powered by whomever he was pursuing. Hind sight is always 20/20, but, he probably should have waited for other officers before he engaged in a chase.

Community policing can be a good job or it can be the beginning of a career in policing, but, I have to wonder how prepared a community police officer in a middle class area are equipped to take on the chase of several men. I know every officer wants to be able to stop crime before or even as it happens, but, one person regardless of experience is not necessarily going to have a good outcome. I don't know how a seasoned police officer of this community could make such a fatal mistake.

According to crime statistics the largest number of crimes in Fox Lake is theft. (click here) I get the feeling the community police were not used to confronting dangerous criminals. I am sure they were under pressure to bring down the rate of thefts in the city. Other than theft the crime rate in Fox Lake is very low. This death is going to be difficult. This simply doesn't happen there.

I know community police officers want to be sufficient to every need of the community, but, the the reality is they should not take on such a pursuit alone. Calling an all points bulletin with descriptions is a far better idea. 

My sincerest sympathy to all, especially his family. This is a hard one to come to terms with. He was a good guy and too willing to live up to hero status. 

Police officers have to measure their ability against the 'crime of the moment." It is better to have a "Most Wanted Locally" poster than a dead officer. Community police cannot be expected to be an FBI agent or even a SBI agent. They receive training, but, not necessarily extensive training. Perhaps the state's SBI can conduct seminars to help police measure the extent they can reply to crimes. The community police officers are wonderful at responding to emergencies in such a community as Fox Lake. This officer is over extending himself and he wanted to be the one that had his eye on those he pursued, but, it was not the best idea.

Damn it.

A font change. I suppose this is about something legal.

It must have been a tough board meeting to come up with this font. Interesting.

There is absolutely no doubt the officers shot a man in cold blood. He had his hands up when they killed him.

SAN ANTONIO - The unedited version of a video (click here for video) obtained by KSAT 12 News showing the fatal shooting of a man by two Bexar County sheriff deputies will now be made available for online viewing.

The video will include the actual moment the 41-year-old suspect, Gilbert Flores, was shot outside a home in the 24400 block of Walnut Pass. The video also shows what deputies Greg Vasquez and Robert Sanchez did moments after the shooting. Vasquez and Sanchez are on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation....

It appears as though all lives don't matter in Texas.

I like Harry's tie. The subtle background color matches the color his suit perfectly.

August 23, 2015
By Brakton Booker

President Obama's campaign (click here) to win support for the nuclear deal with Iran got a forceful boost Sunday when Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada announced his endorsement. Reid, the Senate's top Democrat, says he will "do everything in [his] power" to make sure the deal stands.
Reid's backing adds even more weight to a groundswell of support building on Capitol Hill for the deal between the U.S., Iran and five other nations.
In a statement, Reid says he "strongly supports" the agreement, calling it "the best path to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."...

September 1, 2015

By Arshad Mohammed, Matt Spetalnick and Mark Hosenball

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States (click here) is considering sanctions against both Russian and Chinese individuals and companies for cyber attacks against U.S. commercial targets, several U.S. officials said on Monday.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said no final decision had been made on imposing sanctions, which could strain relations with Russia further and, if they came soon, cast a pall over a state visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping in September.
The Washington Post first reported the Obama administration was considering sanctioning Chinese targets, possibly within the next few weeks, and said that individuals and firms from other nations could also be targeted. It did not mention Russia....

I have to wonder how much the Donald Trump campaign is providing momentum to changes in USA policy. It certainly has propelled his billionaire peers to aspiration of leadership.

What has taken so long to do something about the hackers of other countries? They should be in prison.  

I am not surprised Donald Trump is running. Why aren't the other billionaires running as well? It is silly to realize one man is funding another man in Ted Cruz in a presidential run. Is it that Republicans holding office are less corrupt? It is a very strange paradigm. If they are going to invest in politics and believe money will buy the office why not do it themselves?

 

Pope Francis recognizes the moral ordeal of abortion.

September 1, 2015

by Alastair Jamieson and Claudio Lavanga

...The pontiff said he will allow priests (click here) "discretion to absolve of the sin of abortion those who have procured it and who, with contrite heart, seek forgiveness for it" during the special year, beginning December 8. 

"I am well aware of the pressure that has led [women] to this decision," he wrote in the announcement. "I know that it is an existential and moral ordeal.
Abortion is considered a grave sin by the Catholic church, and those who seek it are usually excommunicated. In normal circumstances, forgiveness can only be granted by senior church figures....

This is at least the third shipment Greece has found carrying weapons.

September 1, 2015

ATHENS, Greece (AP) " Greek authorities (click here) say a coast guard special unit raid has found a shipment of weapons on board a foreign-flagged cargo ship sailing near the southern island of Crete.

The coast guard said Tuesday the ship is being taken to a port for a further search and investigation into the shipment. It would not immediately release any further information on the type or amount of weapons on board, where the ship was sailing to or from, the identity of the ship or the crew.

Authorities said further information would be released later in the day.

Greece has a significant number of ships in the world's oceans. Shipping is a part of the economy of Greece. As a result Greece shipping networks are targets of terrorists. In February a Greek ship was boarded by pirates off Nigeria BEFORE it has been loaded with oil. It is always the contention of Nigerians that the oil leaving their country are never a revenue to the people so much as monies to a corrupt government.

4 February 2015

Gunmen have boarded a Greek-owned tanker (click here) anchored near a Nigerian port, killing one crew member and taking three others hostage, officials say.

The Kalamos was attacked while it was waiting to load at Qua Iboe, an oil terminal in south-eastern Nigeria.
The pirates killed a Greek deputy captain of the ship, and took two Greeks and a Pakistani citizen hostage, according to the Greek government.
The Gulf of Guinea in West Africa is regarded as a new centre of piracy....

Greek authorities are probably more sensitive to ships with illegal cargo that define pirates and terrorists. Given the problems North Africa is experiencing it is vital weapons are interrupted in their transit to militants.

Oh, you mean Establishment Republicans are corrupted by Wall Street.

August 31, 2015
By Alan Rappaport

WASHINGTON — For years (click here), Republicans have run for office on promises of cutting taxes and bolstering business to stimulate economic growth, pledging allegiance to a Reaganesque model of conservatism that has largely become the party’s orthodoxy.

But this election cycle, the Republican presidential candidate who currently leads in most polls is taking a different approach, and it is jangling the nerves of some of the party’s most traditional supporters.

The tendency of that candidate, the billionaire developer Donald J. Trump, to make provocative, headline-grabbing speeches has helped obscure an emerging set of beliefs: that he would raise taxes in certain areas, particularly on corporations that he believes do not act in the best interests of the United States.

In recent weeks, Mr. Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on American companies that put their factories in other countries. He has suggested he would increase taxes on the compensation of hedge fund managers. And he has vowed to change laws that allow American companies to benefit from cheaper tax rates by using mergers to base their operations outside the United States....

Donald Trump is going forward unafraid with his campaign. I congratulate him on calling for the taxes the USA Treasury requires. Many people that actually know something about governance knows the taxes have to be increased to reduce the national debt. 

From Mother Jones:

June 9. 2015
By Kevin Drum
 
It's hardly surprising (click here) when Democrats criticize Grover Norquist, the godfather of the anti-tax movement. But following like sheep behind Norquist's demands to lower taxes always and everywhere has gotten states in so much trouble that even some Republicans are now begging him to be a little less obstinate. Sadly for Louisiana, Norquist is having none of it:

A group of self-described "conservative" Republican state representatives took their complaints to Norquist himself, asking him to give them some wiggle room on raising taxes and to shoot down some Jindal-backed legislation that they say would set a "dangerous precedent" in how government could mask revenue hikes....

Any form of government in the USA is established through taxation. It is impossible to continue to cut taxes to ZERO. Even Republicans are recognizing the Norquist tax pledge is corruption when realizing taxes are required to actually govern.

Seward, Alaska is at the head of the Resurrection Bay.

President Obama will be at one of the most beautiful places in the country, Resurrection Bay at Seward, Alaska.

The only exception to the beauty is the obvious effects of climate change. This pictures brings attention to whales in the bay, but, it also shows the scoured shorelines of Resurrection Bay. Those scoured rocks are evidence to the loss of glaciers and ice in Alaska. 

Perfect for families (click here) and just the right length to allow time for other activities in Seward, our Resurrection Bay Wildlife Tour, with an exclusive visit to Fox Island for a wild Alaskan salmon and prime rib buffet, is always a great choice!... 

The bay is home to some of the most incredible kayaking, especially realizing it empties to the Pacific Ocean which where the whales are coming from to enjoy and rest in calmer waters. 

Fourth of July Creek Area (click here)
"Directly east of Seward, across the head of Resurrection Bay is a wooded valley with an extensive gravel out wash plain. A glacier stream known as Fourth of July Creek descends the valley from Godwin Glacier. The Fourth of July beach is an excellent camping and kayak staging area from which to launch and paddle the eastern shore of Resurrection Bay. The distance from Fourth of July Creek to Thumb Cove is 5 nautical miles."

If the press does not take this opportunity to showcase one of the most beautiful spots on Earth it would be an injustice to Americans.

September 1, 2015
By Roberta Rampton

Obama will spend the second day (click here) of his Alaska tour in the picturesque coastal town of Seward, named after President Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of State William Seward, who negotiated the purchase of Alaska in 1867 from Russia.
Obama plans to hike the Exit Glacier near Seward and take a boat tour of Kenai Fjords National Park to see the impact of rising seas. "Climate change is no longer some far-off problem. It is happening here. It is happening now," Obama said on Monday in an address urging the world to agree later this year to new targets for cutting carbon emissions. On Monday, residents spruced up the town after a recent wind storm. "We get to showcase our piece of paradise to the president of the United States, and that means a lot to us as it would any town," Seward Mayor Jean Bardarson said in an interview....

Hillary Clinton needs to go forward with her campaign.

This entire ELECTRONIC issue is bizarre created by the media. 

Let me see if I get this right.

The emails was on a secured classified server.

And the public is now getting the contents of the server regarding the business of the State Department from the State Department. It hasn't come from the Chinese hackers or released by Wikileaks. The entire idea this is even a topic is nothing but gossip. Everyone needs to FIGURE OUT what the redacted emails say. That reality is bizarre to have everyone carry on as if the public has DISCOVERED the truth about the compromised status of the USA State Department. There is no there there and this entire subject has no basis for the attention it is getting. 

Basically, Hillary Clinton's server out foxed the leakers. What a shame.