December 7, 2017
By Arthur Allen
Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin (click here) has killed a plan to shift money from a major homelessness program in response to a wave of protest from veterans' advocates, who said the move would aggravate conditions for chronically ill and vulnerable vets.
Advocates for veterans, state officials and even officials from HUD, which co-sponsors the $460 million program, had attacked the decision, saying the service has helped dramatically reduce homelessness among veterans. After POLITICO published a story about their anger, Shulkin reversed course late Wednesday....
Does anyone actually believe the monies for homeless veterans will remain intact? No one believes that, do they? Trump puts on a good show, but, it has no substance. The US Senate and House just passed a hideous budget and tax cuts to match. Ask Mitch McConnell if he knows FOR A FACT the Veterans will receive their homeless monies year after year after year until the problem is solved? Ask him. Ask Ryan. Make them PROVE the monies are going where it is needed.
...The announcement came after a confusing week of messaging from the VA. On Nov. 27, Shulkin and HUD Secretary Ben Carson appeared at a Washington shelter to tout President Donald Trump's commitment to ending veteran homelessness.
Then on Dec. 1, Shulkin's staff told advocates on a phone call that the agency was ending the program--one of two major VA homelessness projects-- and funneling the money to local VA hospitals that could decide how to use it. The original VA decision was buried in a September circular without prior consultation with HUD or veterans’ groups....
Who are homeless veterans? (click here)
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) states that the nation’s homeless veterans are predominantly male, with roughly 9% being female. The majority are single; live in urban areas; and suffer from mental illness, alcohol and/or substance abuse, or co-occurring disorders. About 11% of the adult homeless population are veterans.
Roughly 45% of all homeless veterans are African American or Hispanic, despite only accounting for 10.4% and 3.4% of the U.S. veteran population, respectively.
Homeless veterans are younger on average than the total veteran population. Approximately 9% are between the ages of 18 and 30, and 41% are between the ages of 31 and 50. Conversely, only 5% of all veterans are between the ages of 18 and 30, and less than 23% are between 31 and 50.
America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, the Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, Persian Gulf War, Afghanistan and Iraq (OEF/OIF), and the military’s anti-drug cultivation efforts in South America. Nearly half of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era. Two-thirds served our country for at least three years, and one-third were stationed in a war zone.
About 1.4 million other veterans, meanwhile, are considered at risk of homelessness due to poverty, lack of support networks, and dismal living conditions in overcrowded or substandard housing.
How many homeless veterans are there?
Although flawless counts are impossible to come by – the transient nature of homeless populations presents a major difficulty – the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that 39,471 veterans are homeless on any given night.
Approximately 12,700 veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation New Dawn (OND) were homeless in 2010. The number of young homeless veterans is increasing, but only constitutes 8.8% of the overall homeless veteran population....
Thursday, December 07, 2017
Technical police arguments also work to provide injustice.
Albuquerque, NM
Retired Detective Keith Sandy and former Officer Dominique Perez (click here) will not face a retrial for the shooting of James Boyd, Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez announced Friday.
A jury last fall deadlocked 9 to 3 in favor of former Albuquerque police officers Keith Sandy and Dominique Perez. The state spent more than $230,000 prosecuting the now former officers....
James Boyd was marginalized by Albuquerque laws that provided no place for the homeless to rest and sleep. He was forced to break the law of Albuquerque that put him in a park where he was not allowed to stay overnight. He had no other place to turn to, yet as a human being he needed a place to rest and sleep.
A swat team was dispatched to a location where a homeless man was sleeping. A SWAT TEAM. Why a Swat Team? So they could practice with their dogs in case the real thing happened.
The Swat Team members violated human rights and civil rights and they are not held responsible for murder because they 'acted well within technical police work.'
I don't care who I ask about that video, it makes people want to vomit. The USA has a problem and it isn't the people.
Homelessness is a symptom of a society unwilling to address the needs of all people. Sending police to kill off the problem is not a moral human response.
Homelessness is a symptom of a society unwilling to address the needs of all people. Sending police to kill off the problem is not a moral human response.
Another school shooting with deaths. What was the weapon(s) and how did the person get them?
People are stating this is not the time to talk about guns. There is no other time anyone does talk about guns, except, when they cause deaths and problems. Now, is the only time to talk about guns because otherwise it is all swept away by the media due to another shooting elsewhere. Everyday in the USA someone dies of gun violence. EVERY DAY. What does anyone mean now is not the time to talk about guns?
December 7, 2017
By KRQE
Aztec, N.M. – Three people are dead (click here) after a school shooting at Aztec High School in Aztec, NM.
Two students are dead, the shooter is dead as well. There are no other injuries reported. According to the San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington, no injured people have been transported from Aztec High School.
Earlier deputies and Lt. Kyle Lincoln from the San Juan County Sheriff Department cleared the building and actively searched the school.
San Juan County Sheriff’s Office has asked parents of Aztec High School to pick up their kids at Mcgee Park at noon.
A former Aztec school board member who went by the scene shortly after it unfolded says this is absolutely unheard of in their small community.
“Tragically the horrors that visited many other communities have come to roost here in Aztec,” Michael Padilla said. He also called the scene chaotic and said there was a massive law enforcement presence.
As of 10 a.m. Bloomfield schools are no longer on lockdown. All students faculty and staff are accounted for....
December 7, 2017
By KRQE
Aztec, N.M. – Three people are dead (click here) after a school shooting at Aztec High School in Aztec, NM.
Two students are dead, the shooter is dead as well. There are no other injuries reported. According to the San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington, no injured people have been transported from Aztec High School.
Earlier deputies and Lt. Kyle Lincoln from the San Juan County Sheriff Department cleared the building and actively searched the school.
San Juan County Sheriff’s Office has asked parents of Aztec High School to pick up their kids at Mcgee Park at noon.
A former Aztec school board member who went by the scene shortly after it unfolded says this is absolutely unheard of in their small community.
“Tragically the horrors that visited many other communities have come to roost here in Aztec,” Michael Padilla said. He also called the scene chaotic and said there was a massive law enforcement presence.
As of 10 a.m. Bloomfield schools are no longer on lockdown. All students faculty and staff are accounted for....
Michael Slager lied. He did so expecting to have no witnesses to killing an African American man murdered.
What is troubling about his murder is the fact the police officer falsified documents.
There was a tail light out in the rear of the car he was driving and Walter Scott was behind on his child support. Two relatively benign issues drove Walter Scott from the car to run from the police in fear of being arrested. Walter Scott was not in violation of any major felony that involved violence, weapons or assault on a police officer. He was afraid of being arrested and what that might mean for his life. He ran. He ran from fear of arrest and jail.
The fear Walter Scott felt was irrational fear, yet it overwhelmed his common sense and instill dread about his life. That fear was instilled in him by experiences by other African Americans confronted by Caucasian police. The fear that drives African American men to flee for their own lives is completely irrational, but, it exists no less.
I don't know what the USA has to do to prevent others like Walter Scott from placing themselves in a compromising circumstance than the one they are facing when confronted. I have seen such heinous use by police officers of their weapons and this is one of them.
There was another instance that upset me, when a man, an African American man, in a wheelchair with a gun in his lap, was gunned down because police had the right to do it. There was no reason for the police to kill a basically helpless man, except, their training stated as long as they tell someone to drop their gun they have the right to shoot that person if the gun remains in the person's possession with potential danger. There was no way that man sitting in a wheelchair was going to cause any harm to the many police officers surrounding him.
The same type of incident was carried out with Tamir Rice. The child never even understood the words the police was stating as the police car pulled up next to him. He was innocently playing with a toy gun in a park when a police officer decided it was okay to use the gun on a child. The police officer rather use a gun out of proper police procedure than actually treat Tamir as a citizen, WITH RIGHTS and try to understand the circumstances to disarm and/or disable a potential shooting.
That is not police work, that is an issue of some of the poorest police work ever recorded and the easy way out. See, Walter Scott required a police officer to call for assistance while he gave chase. Tamir Rice needed an officer to stop, with weapon at the ready, to find out if this was a life or death situation. Even the person making the phone call eventually stated, before Tamir was shot, I think that gun is a toy. The person reporting the incident stated that to a dispatcher. I cannot imagine how the person reporting Tamir feels today. I don't imagine it is easy to simply ignore it.
There is absolutely no reason for Tamir to be dead. It was technically correct for the officer to use the gun, but, it was very sloppy police work that killed an innocent person.
The police work being conducted in the USA is very troubling. It is knee jerk reaction to situations and circumstances. The police work today are laced with lies reported and signed off. A reporting that treats the citizen as if a ferocious criminal that no one could control and as if an animal on the run. Heck, they even use tranquilizers on dangerous animals among society.
I blame the police unions in instructing their officers to use whatever force is legally before them. That type of advise is not good advise, it is not advise police should listen to and it is advise to justify murder to prevent costs for defense of police officers. If the officers acted as they should in assessing the situation for what is was the idea of charging a police officer with any crime would not even be an issue.
Michael Slager would not be facing prison if he bothered to assess the situation. Officers would not be facing charges, investigations and potentially prison if they actually conducted effective police work and assessed the situation. Walter Scott was no threat to anyone, but, himself because he could not control his fear of police officers and the temporary hold in jail he would have faced.
There are no reasons for any of these killings. The awareness began with Michael Brown, but, it was occurring long before them. It needs to stop and good police work replacing police with the right to kill.
My continued sympathies for the Scott family and friends and all African American families that have lost members to very poor police work.
December 7, 2017
By Med Kinnard
One by one, (click here) relatives of the late Walter Scott urged a judge to mete out a significant punishment for Michael Slager, the white former police officer who fatally shot Scott, an unarmed black man, in the back after a 2015 traffic stop.
Through tears, Scott's family told Slager they felt sorrow for him and the loss his young children would feel in his absence. In the end, a judge sentenced Slager to 20 years in prison, giving the Scott family the justice they had sought ever since a stranger came to them with the shocking video of Scott being killed.
"I forgive Michael Slager. I forgive you," Scott's mother, Judy, said as she turned toward her son's killer. "I pray for you, that you would repent and let Jesus come in your life."
Sitting just a few feet away, Slager wiped tears from his eyes and mouthed: "I'm sorry."
The punishment wrapped up a case that became a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement. Slager, 36, is one of only a few police officers to go to prison for a fatal shooting, and his sentence is by far the stiffest since the shootings came under extra scrutiny in recent years.
Attorneys for the former North Charleston officer said he shot the 50-year-old Scott in self-defense after the two fought and Scott grabbed Slager's stun gun. They said race didn't play a role in the shooting and Slager never had any "racial animus" toward minorities....
There was a tail light out in the rear of the car he was driving and Walter Scott was behind on his child support. Two relatively benign issues drove Walter Scott from the car to run from the police in fear of being arrested. Walter Scott was not in violation of any major felony that involved violence, weapons or assault on a police officer. He was afraid of being arrested and what that might mean for his life. He ran. He ran from fear of arrest and jail.
The fear Walter Scott felt was irrational fear, yet it overwhelmed his common sense and instill dread about his life. That fear was instilled in him by experiences by other African Americans confronted by Caucasian police. The fear that drives African American men to flee for their own lives is completely irrational, but, it exists no less.
I don't know what the USA has to do to prevent others like Walter Scott from placing themselves in a compromising circumstance than the one they are facing when confronted. I have seen such heinous use by police officers of their weapons and this is one of them.
There was another instance that upset me, when a man, an African American man, in a wheelchair with a gun in his lap, was gunned down because police had the right to do it. There was no reason for the police to kill a basically helpless man, except, their training stated as long as they tell someone to drop their gun they have the right to shoot that person if the gun remains in the person's possession with potential danger. There was no way that man sitting in a wheelchair was going to cause any harm to the many police officers surrounding him.
The same type of incident was carried out with Tamir Rice. The child never even understood the words the police was stating as the police car pulled up next to him. He was innocently playing with a toy gun in a park when a police officer decided it was okay to use the gun on a child. The police officer rather use a gun out of proper police procedure than actually treat Tamir as a citizen, WITH RIGHTS and try to understand the circumstances to disarm and/or disable a potential shooting.
That is not police work, that is an issue of some of the poorest police work ever recorded and the easy way out. See, Walter Scott required a police officer to call for assistance while he gave chase. Tamir Rice needed an officer to stop, with weapon at the ready, to find out if this was a life or death situation. Even the person making the phone call eventually stated, before Tamir was shot, I think that gun is a toy. The person reporting the incident stated that to a dispatcher. I cannot imagine how the person reporting Tamir feels today. I don't imagine it is easy to simply ignore it.
There is absolutely no reason for Tamir to be dead. It was technically correct for the officer to use the gun, but, it was very sloppy police work that killed an innocent person.
The police work being conducted in the USA is very troubling. It is knee jerk reaction to situations and circumstances. The police work today are laced with lies reported and signed off. A reporting that treats the citizen as if a ferocious criminal that no one could control and as if an animal on the run. Heck, they even use tranquilizers on dangerous animals among society.
I blame the police unions in instructing their officers to use whatever force is legally before them. That type of advise is not good advise, it is not advise police should listen to and it is advise to justify murder to prevent costs for defense of police officers. If the officers acted as they should in assessing the situation for what is was the idea of charging a police officer with any crime would not even be an issue.
Michael Slager would not be facing prison if he bothered to assess the situation. Officers would not be facing charges, investigations and potentially prison if they actually conducted effective police work and assessed the situation. Walter Scott was no threat to anyone, but, himself because he could not control his fear of police officers and the temporary hold in jail he would have faced.
There are no reasons for any of these killings. The awareness began with Michael Brown, but, it was occurring long before them. It needs to stop and good police work replacing police with the right to kill.
My continued sympathies for the Scott family and friends and all African American families that have lost members to very poor police work.
December 7, 2017By Med Kinnard
One by one, (click here) relatives of the late Walter Scott urged a judge to mete out a significant punishment for Michael Slager, the white former police officer who fatally shot Scott, an unarmed black man, in the back after a 2015 traffic stop.
Through tears, Scott's family told Slager they felt sorrow for him and the loss his young children would feel in his absence. In the end, a judge sentenced Slager to 20 years in prison, giving the Scott family the justice they had sought ever since a stranger came to them with the shocking video of Scott being killed.
"I forgive Michael Slager. I forgive you," Scott's mother, Judy, said as she turned toward her son's killer. "I pray for you, that you would repent and let Jesus come in your life."
Sitting just a few feet away, Slager wiped tears from his eyes and mouthed: "I'm sorry."
The punishment wrapped up a case that became a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement. Slager, 36, is one of only a few police officers to go to prison for a fatal shooting, and his sentence is by far the stiffest since the shootings came under extra scrutiny in recent years.
Attorneys for the former North Charleston officer said he shot the 50-year-old Scott in self-defense after the two fought and Scott grabbed Slager's stun gun. They said race didn't play a role in the shooting and Slager never had any "racial animus" toward minorities....
WATCH: Sen. Al Franken announces resignation on Senate floor
Senator Franken has been a loyal Democrat and devoted US Senator during his entire service in the US Senate. I think he did the right thing by resigning today.
Before he completely leaves, he should file a bill that will end the exploitation of women and their bodies in the media; such as Howard Stern. Senator Franken knows something about radio and entertainment. He has had to compete with such men as Howard Stern and understands the dynamics that bring radio talk shows pressure to be sexual in their content. That content brings pressure to women in our society. It carries over to the work place as well. I think US Senator Franken could find the exact words that would bring about respect for women through media engagement.
I wish him well and continued success in his career choices.
Before he completely leaves, he should file a bill that will end the exploitation of women and their bodies in the media; such as Howard Stern. Senator Franken knows something about radio and entertainment. He has had to compete with such men as Howard Stern and understands the dynamics that bring radio talk shows pressure to be sexual in their content. That content brings pressure to women in our society. It carries over to the work place as well. I think US Senator Franken could find the exact words that would bring about respect for women through media engagement.
I wish him well and continued success in his career choices.
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