Now we are getting somewhere.

December 20, 2014

By David E. Sanger, Nicole Perlroth and Eric Schmitt

Washington — The Obama administration has sought China’s help in recent days in blocking North Korea’s ability to launch cyberattacks, the first steps toward the “proportional response” President Obama vowed to make the North pay for the assault on Sony Pictures — and as part of a campaign to issue a broader warning against future hacking, according to senior administration officials.

“What we are looking for is a blocking action, something that would cripple their efforts to carry out attacks,” one official said.

So far, the Chinese have not responded. Their cooperation would be critical, since virtually all of North Korea’s telecommunications run through Chinese-operated networks....

Deciding Second Amerndment rights for the incompetent isn't the authority of the Sheriff's Department or courts.

December 19, 2014
By Lyle Dennison

Breaking ranks with other federal appeals courts, (click here) and probably setting up a major test case for the Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that laws imposing controls on the personal right to have a gun must satisfy the most rigorous constitutional test.  And, in another split with other courts, it was the first to strike down a federal gun law under the Constitution’s Second Amendment as expanded by the Supreme Court six years ago....

...If the government appeals the decision, either to the en banc Sixth Circuit or to the Supreme Court, and if the ruling were to be upheld, it could have an impact on gun control laws well beyond the specific limit at issue in this case.  It appeared to cast into constitutional doubt at least some of a host of laws, federal and state, that impose categorical bans on groups of individuals — that is, bans that preclude anyone in an excluded group from being able to prove individually that they should have access to guns....

This individual was found to be incompetent at some point for whatever reason there was. It is the burden of the individual to have a psychiatrist find him competent to reverse his inability to possess firearms. There is no reason why the same system of protections for both gun owners and society can't be accessed to renew Second Amendment rights. This is ridiculous.

The decision states: (click here) Bottom paragraph page 46,

...The government’s interest in keeping firearms out of the hands of the mentally ill is not sufficiently related to depriving the mentally healthy, who had a distant episode of commitment, of their constitutional rights....

The challenge to the law is CHOOSING to state the government is not the people with a vested interest in who is allowed to possess a gun legally and who is not. The fact of the matter is the "government" in the law legislated has a very direct interest in the safety of society with innumerable examples especially in recent years. The law has a right to exist in the face of an obvious danger to society.

This is typical of right wing impressions that the US Constitution stands alone outside the dynamics of the society that lives under it. It's ridiculous. It is like saying in 1776 there were five people living in Michigan and therefore there was no reason for law. That might have also been the case with Kentucky and Daniel Boon's ancestors. But, as time passes and populations increase, the political demographics and geography of the country changes the 'definition' of safety changes. The subsequent laws of the USA since the adoption of the USA Constitution matters.

This is where any argument by strict constructionists fails. They won't admit that it fails, but, it does. Strict constructionists of the practice of USA Constitutional law don't provide for the social dynamics that impact citizens and the very real need to pass laws upholding a standard of safety. This lawsuit is extreme and never should have existed in the first place. Someone decided to make a mess of the law again.

The burden lies with the individual to present evidence to mental competency and not the government. The government can offer a vehicle for the individual to return a finding of competency such as a form from a qualified psychiatrist, but, it is not the government's place to allow those found incompetent to have guns no matter how many years have passed since the initial finding.

What happens to states' rights and Ginsberg?

December 19, 2014
By Space Coast Daily

Rejecting a request by Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (click here) to maintain a judge’s stay that would have kept same-sex couples from marrying in the state, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of gay marriages to begin in Florida next month.

The stay was a result of the ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert L. Hinkle, who said in August that Florida’s 2008 ban is unconstitutional....

Another decision by the court regarding Class Actions. My initial reaction is to realize not all class actions are federal (invoking interstate laws) and the States should have some authority in such cases. This decision removes states from asserting their laws that come to bear.

Plausible allegation us grounds to transfer to a federal court? Why bother with state laws and state courts? Whatever.

December 19, 2014
By Kimberly Robertson

Dec. 15 — It just got easier (click here) for class action defendants to have their cases heard in federal court, attorneys told Bloomberg BNA after a U.S. Supreme Court decision Dec. 15 that raised issues under the Class Action Fairness Act.

A defendant need include only a “plausible allegation” of the jurisdictional requirements in a notice of removal to federal court—not evidentiary proof, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote for the court.

The case involved a relatively straight-forward question of what must be included in a notice of removal under 28 U.S.C. §1446(b), but hit what Justice Antonin Scalia's dissenting opinion called “a little snag: This case does not present that question.”

A procedural obstacle first brought to the fore after briefing by a “friend of the court” divided the justices, in the court's first 5-4 decision of the 2014 term.

Pro-Business Decision

“The Supreme Court's decision today is welcome news for businesses that face class actions in state court and seek to transfer them to federal court under the federal Class Action Fairness Act,” Archis A. Parasharami of Mayer Brown LLP, Washington, said in a statement e-mailed to Bloomberg BNA....

...the court “held that, when a defendant files a notice that a case is being removed to federal court from state court, it is enough to allege in the notice that the case involves over $5 million in controversy, which is one of the key requirements for removal under CAFA.”

“The defendant does not have to submit evidence in support of the removal unless the plaintiff later seeks to return the case to state court,” Parasharami said....

The question is whether or not the defendant can bring evidence within 30 days. Change it to 60 if that is the case. I can't imagine a state or appellate court denying any extension with reasonable request to that effect.

It sounds like this creates a circus of motions by the plaintiffs.

The USA is facing two years of Republican majority at the federal level. It is important for any minority interest to have lobbyists in DC as well as the state capitals. I realize that is expensive, but, I am confident a way to bring minority grievances forward will find a way.

The factors of inequality have to be removed from the USA.

The arguments in the media that define the police as absolute authority and should not be questioned is wrong. The demonstrators engaging the right to assemble are correct.

There has been something very wrong in the deaths of young black men at the hand of police. To state the police are absolutely correct and their own authority is a racist statement. In stating the police are correct lies the reality police treat the circumstances of black and white citizens differently. There is no proof of differences of the racists in treatment under the law. That is what the Civil War was suppose to eliminate.

The unions have not done their homework either. Their officers and office staff should be alert to the problems of police officers in the practice of engaging the law to intervene. The unions are sloppy and don't seek to solve the problems of the members of the union. To simply send in the A-Team of lawyers is not an answer. The union is suppose to uphold the ethics of their members as well as their right to good pay and benefits.

Union members are important to the practice of collective bargaining. Unions should enter any negotiations fully aware of the practice and problems of their members. Simpy defending every police shooting through Grand Jury proceedings is a negligence toward those that receive the service of their members. The 'end product' of any union be it service worker (which the police provide a service) or product such as a car is what should be the goal of any union and it's union officers. Without a quality product a union won't exist.

The Best Practices of unionization includes holding quality control meetings. From time to time members need to be aware of changes in the practice they are employed. Seminars to maintain members in good standing should be part of the benefits provided by unions. In places that are bilingual or otherwise, the unions should be offering English as a Second Language classes and holding meetings in the languages of their members. That means if a auto plant has both Spanish speaking and English speaking members, the member is the focus and communication should be addressed as such. There is no excuse for any deterioration of product quality.

In the case of police officer, the record of deaths of any officer is part of the bargaining table. A review of that death while in the line of duty has to be addressed, but, in the same instance the deaths of citizens need to be addressed at that meeting as well. If there is a trend in the deaths of citizens proving a disparity of practice that has to be addressed both by the employer and the union. A gun is not the signature to the agreement, a human being is.

Also, the disparity in convictions of African American men need to be addressed both by law enforcement and justice. There are considerable differences in the number of African American men in USA prisons. The reasons for that have to be determined and addressed. By all rights, considering the percentages of minorities in the USA there should be majority white men and/or women in prison.

Crime is frequently a factor in poverty. If that is the case it is the poverty that has to be addressed as well as the crime. There is no excuse for such a disparity in a worthwhile society.

The African American community has to believe in it's innocence when addressing these problems in marches and their meetings. They are to carry the banner of innocence forward to demand recognition of the differences in majority and minority life. It has to be part of their activism. They need to believe they are aggrieved and in that finding a way to have it addressed in candidates that are as concerned about their outcomes. If lobbyists in DC can cause oppression, African American lobbyists in DC and in state capitals need to end it.

Equality has not been honored as it was designed more than a century ago, to that end there needs to be resolve to bring about fairness and quality of life for the people within poverty that simply have given up in living out their lives without the American promise guaranteed to all Americans.

This is not a unique circumstance of American blacks, there are other countries that have that display of inequality and lack of quality of life. Nelson Mandela moved his nation to equality within the power structure of government, but, it never touched their lives in quality of life. The quality of life in any country is dictated by many factors. 

There had to be something systemic causing this problem with police.

Where is the infraction in the civil rights laws, the representation by lawyers of unions or actual contract wording. Unions are a bargaining unit that provides important representation against unfair labor practices, but, they aren't the law. There is a profound understanding throughout the USA that extreme force is allowed. With such an understanding why wouldn't the police confront the public with a methodology of self-defense over and above the tempered understanding of the law.

This isn't an attack on unions per se, so much as the actions of their members beyond the practice of law enforcement. The police are killing first and asking questions later. Who wouldn't want to be a police officer with guaranteed outcomes to any confrontation. The death of Tamir Rice is an example of the bureaucratic police officer. All the police officer had to do was state the call, "Drop the gun" three times and then fire upon Tamir. That is autocratic in every definition and is not good police practice. The unions have taken the sovereign authority from the city or town or state or country and provided it's own rules for engagement of citizens.

How did all this get started? Where did the unions find the authority within their definition of members' rights to actually redefine correct police work? That came from somewhere. Did the members take it to a new level when a union attorney states, "You have to follow proper protocol before engaging your firearm."

This is systemic. In police killing case after case the police are killing innocent black men with impunity. That had isn't beginning somewhere and at some date, so where is that date and where was it decided?

December 19, 2014
CLEVELAND -- The heads of the Cleveland police department's two unions (click here) remain wary about some conclusions drawn in a U.S. Justice Department report alleging a pattern and practice of excessive use of force by officers. But they also hope an eventual agreement between the city and the department will result in improvements.

Jeff Follmer leads the Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association, which represents more than 1,200 officers on the 1,500-member force. He is hopeful the agreement will result in officers being provided equipment that surrounding suburban departments have had for years.... 

This is a little too much passion for my liking. I guess the police union leadership can't handle the fact they represent the primary law enforcement in the sovereign USA. There is some heady stuff in the unions representation. It knows no bounds and successfully carries out exoneration of murder.

December 18, 2014
By Azi Pabarah
An organizer for one of the city’s largest private labor unions (click here) was arrested Thursday in connection with the assault of two NYPD lieutenants on the Brooklyn Bridge during last Saturday's march against police violence.
Robert Murray, 43, an organizer for 32BJ SEIU, who surrendered to police and who police previously identified as "Male No. 3," is alleged to have pulled Lieutenants Philip Chan and Patrick Sullivan “to the ground” as they attempted to arrest CUNY adjunct professor Eric Linsker for allegedly throwing or trying to throw a metal garbage can. ("The acts of Eric Linsker is what started the whole chain of events," said Manhattan chief of detectives William Aubry at a press conference today.

Referring to video of the melee, Aubry said, “He also punches Lt. Chan, twice, so hard that we have a witness that says he heard the fist to the face. He heard that noise.”...

There is some aspect of this that is codified to bring about this exoneration of police.I would think at some point in time the police union members would recognize the danger to citizens on their own and bring it to the awareness of their representatives and members. I guess the power to act autonomously is too tempting.
Laws are tempered in the USA, what are the words? "The punishment fits the crime." Something like that. The police are taking outcomes to any crime committed into their own hands and acting to end life without restraint. Now, this isn't every police officer, as there are examples of good police work, but, this exists in the majority. 
The current practice of police removes due process.
The EMPLOYER in on the hook here. There has to be a place within the job description defining good from bad practice. The unions are not suppose to dictate the law. The only way a union can change the laws of any authority is through the court systems or a hearing through the NLRB and that is about unfair labor practices.
Just because a city or town or state or otherwise doesn't have a job description doesn't mean they are off the hook. There should be no doubt about the practice of any police officer when he takes on that job. A police officer is an extension of the law. Laws are passed by majority legislation, there are no means of changing that.
If the unions are this aggressive there is a need to roll back their authority to the point where towns and cities still carry the most brevity to insure the safety of their citizens. This is ridiculous. This focus on African American men is a human rights issue. That is a fact. This isn't about just a particular set of circumstances, this is encompassing an entire class of citizens.
This is how bad or lousy cops keep their jobs. They hide behind their representatives. Wasn't the police union representative at the physical examination of Darren Wilson? They have a right to be there, but, they should not be strong arming authorities in threats of legal action or otherwise. Unions need to be about the best practices, otherwise, they risk being a part of the problem.
Union marches for the best and most reasonable pay, benefits and working conditions are important, but, not backing bad police practices. The unions are going to far.

A soldier of fortune sent a pick-up truck to Syria.

Evidently, whom ever decided it was okay to bring enhanced opportunity to the Islamic State can now find haven in other countries, because, this has to be illegal in the USA. The area code for Texas City is 409.

Why would this be illegal? Because they are arming opposition to the USA's participation in Syria. The Arab Coalition is in alliance with the USA. This is exceptionally illegal.

We know the Islamic State has money because it sells oil. It doesn't care if the price of oil falls because it never made an investment for the infrastructure. The Islamic State stole the land from Syria and from Syrians. They have money and it is possible they hired and continue to hire soldiers from across the globe, including Great Britain, Australia and otherwise.

The Islamic State is a mercenary organization to begin with. It exchanges loyalty for money, housing, etc. The Islamic State even promises that guarantee there are brides to spawn the children of the caliphate. That is not a definition of a sovereign power. Those that get involved with the Islamic State have anticipations upon their arrival, it is an understood contract.

The Islamic State isn't even a warlord. Warlords have the ability 'to attract' individuals without loyalties to simply be on the winning side and be alive. The Islamic State only allows certain religious affiliations. The Islamic State discriminates it's participants, as a rule warlords don't, it is why young Muslim men were a part of a jihad movement in Afghanistan.

The Islamic State is based in a commercial enterprise with wealth assets and promises of a fantasized life. Basically, the Islamic State is promising virgins and abundance of them and the riches of living "islamic" as their incentive. They are bringing heaven into reality. There is no sacrifice needed to be a member of the Islamic State. Participants come and go from the Islamic State as they please. It is club that practices genocide.

December 20, 2014
By Haaertz

A Texas plumber (click here) whose truck was photographed serving as a jihadist anti-aircraft gun platform in Syria says he has no idea how it ended up thousands of kilometers away in the war-torn country, according to a report by CBS News....

...Oberholtzer said he had traded in the truck to second-hand dealership three years previously. He left the decal on the truck in the expectation that the dealership would remove it.

A spokesman for the dealer said that they had passed it on to a car auction house, Oberholtzer has been besieged by phone calls — some threatening — since the picture was posted. “A few of the people are really ugly,” he told The Galveston Daily News.

Later in the week, federal Homeland Security officials arrived at Mark-1 Plumbing to question Oberholtzer and his staff.

The Islamic State is the one sincere reason and example of why the different religious nations in the Middle East need to find peace between them. If the countries are divided among each other it is far easier for the Islamic State to find favor among them and spread their poison.

The moral to the story is don't sell anything with identifying marks. When one stops to realize the extent this could cause problems for individuals in the USA or elsewhere, removing the identification of the business should have occurred with the initial owner.

The pick-up at some point left the USA. Why? Who?

This concept that the USA military wants to say this is a group unlike any others isn't really that new. The only reason it stands out is because of it's ability to kill and take land away from sovereign authorities. There have been young Muslim men from around the world conducting jihad for a long time. They enter Pakistan and move toward any uprising in the area.

I don't like to just refer to Mr. Walker Lindh over and over, but, most folks know this episode in his life. It is how John Walker Lindh found himself in the conflict in Afghanistan. He didn't go there to fight the USA, he went there to fight jihad (the moral war). The Islamic State is based in that same ideology. They simply have been more successful because of the Ba'athists and their military knowledge.

I might add that religious grounds are not recognized as permission to commit treason. The First Amendment allows for practice of religion INSIDE the sovereign borders of the USA, it has no validity otherwise. The exception would be USA miltiary soldiers stationed abroad, but, even that would be limited to the base and/or ship belong to the USA. So, men or women seeking the life of a jihadist is romanticizing their ideology to the extreme of becoming an enemy of the USA. 

Americans can go on non-violent pilgrimages. That isn't even in question, get a passport and go to find new and interesting aspects of one's religion, but, picking up a weapon and entering battle is an entirely different decision by any individual.

I'll tell you want I think is lacking with these circumstances regarding the Muslim faith and jihad, is clear language crafted in a law to deny any American from leaving in practice of his or her faith to be a part of jihad abroad. I would go so far as to state this religious practice is recognition of any individual engaging in such practice or support as enemies of the USA. In that is the reality the USA will add their names to "Most Wanted." To do otherwise, even in Great Britain, is ridiculous.

The USA has allies in the Middle East and Far East, so to allow such activity is to carry sovereign authority to war with allies. How can a sovereign authority give permission in any sense to allow holy men or women to recruit Americans, Australians or the English to fight in a foreign land. A measure this strong has to spell out clearly the consequences of their actions abroad and to that end enforced. The Mosques have to be notified that while their practice of the faith is unencumbered in the USA, the USA ends that freedom with recruitment of a fighting force abroad.

I really do believe any internet access to young minds and hearts in the USA that seek recruitment is as illegal as participating in the war. The access should be denied. The internet access of jihadist extremists compromises the Mosques and their protection of the faithful. It is an open venue to invite the Mosques into participation and condoning the exercise of fitting jihad.

I once ran across a page in a US Government website that stated, "If you go past this page it is considered a felony of the USA." Seriously. I don't know how I did that, but, with such a page I automatically decided I didn't need any information that bad. If I can be successfully censored by the authority of the sovereign USA then so can everyone else.

Is the FBI wrong about the fact this was a cyber attack from the government of North Korea?

This is an interesting development. The government of North Korea is willing to help with the cyber attack. 

December 20, 2014

North Korea (click here) has proposed a joint investigation with the United States into the hack attack against Sony Pictures, according to the state news agency, KCNA.

The offer comes as the FBI formally accused Pyongyang of the attack on Friday and US President Barack Obama promised to “respond proportionally” to the online breach.

North Korea says it can prove it has nothing to do with the cyberattack on Sony, the KCNA news release said....

I have not missed one Red Kettle on my rounds this holiday season. When I hear the bell I look for the Red Kettle and donate.

The Salvation Army

"Doing the Most Good"

Am I missing something here, but,...

...is Sony not a Japanese company?

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) (click here) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., which is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation, and includes the following groups:

COLUMBIA TRISTAR MOTION PICTURE GROUP

SONY PICTURES DIGITAL PRODUCTIONS

SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT

SONY PICTURES STUDIOS

SONY PICTURES TELEVISION

I think there are a lot of problems regarding all this, including such a thing called jurisdiction. Where exactly was the company effected within the borders of the USA or at their corporate headquarters in Japan?

Four unreleased movies (click here) were leaked just days after the studio was forced to shut down its network in response to a security breach.

The scope of this cyber breach goes far beyond one movie as well. The graph is a casual measure of the distance from Tokyo to other major cities. Bejing is about 1300 miles from Tokyo, North Korea is going to be that much more, but, not as great a distance compared to Las Vegas.

I realize the issue of exporting terrorism is a concern, but, where did the breach happen in the USA or Japan? It is my opinion while this so called problem seems to be trivial to some extent; it really isn't; when one begins to recognize the depth of the cyber attack.

North Korea has it's own reasons for carrying out this 'mission' against the movie "The Interview," but, at the same instance there are major international laws and treaties involved with this. If Japan was breached and then the USA that shows proximity to North Korea is a problem for that hemisphere. But, if the attack took place in the USA, we are included in the country(ies) with an interest ending this type of aggression.

I don't think there is anything minor about these circumstances. So, while the theaters were really the impetus to retain the movie from being shown, there are a lot of complications for Sony in dealing with all this.

One of the statements by North Korea is that Sony was to end any and all leaks. That isn't even realistic. The leaks happened and it wasn't Sony that did it.

The controversy surrounding this that has been addressed is the idea this will lead to greater and greater infringements on the USA's freedoms and being co-opted by a foreign country in leveraging power over a corporation. That is quite frankly the least of the problem. The problem is huge and begins with the understanding the extent of the breach into Sony's corporate rights. The extent to which that is international as well as corporate has to be decided. The legal wrangling of all this is extensive. 

I think Sony simply decided the relationships with theaters and all those currently involuntarily involved needed to be protected. I doubt they had policies to even address such a bizarre circumstance.

President Obama is correct in that having a motion picture of paramount importance to a distant country is extremely odd. There are films aired in the USA all the time that carry controversy, but, that is our country and not North Korea where minor blemishes to their dictator is a gigantic problem.

I also believe North Korea took offense at the idea the USA was lampooning their leader in asking unassuming people to 'take him out.' The reaction by the actors when asked was "Take him out to lunch?" So the oddity of the film was not appreciated and the idea of ending a young leader's life in that country in particular is very real. This is off topic, but, realizing there were members of Kim's family put to death, the entire dialogue about any death in North Korea is a sensitive issue. I know it is not the issue in the USA, but, when one puts it into context from the view point of North Korea their problems with the film becomes somewhat clearer. I am not justifying any of this, because, I think it is a very big problem now that it has come our shores.

I know from a military standpoint and having the upper hand the reaction by Sony is wrong in the eyes of the Commander and Chief and rightfully so, but, I still believe Sony and Japan have to weigh all the problems and do what is best for everyone. I think everyone has their viewpoint and all are valid. It is simply how one views the problem and impact that one may feel differently than someone else. I will leave it in Sony's hands to do the right thing for their country and expect countries to become involved in defining everyone's responsibility. The problem is tricky. Why take risks when human beings are involved?

President Obama stated, "Building infrastructure for the USA would provide a million jobs for the country."

The Republicans state, "Keystone XL Pipeline would make a few thousand construction jobs initially and about 50 jobs permanently, maybe."

What is the difference?

Spending. President Obama wants Congress to authorize spending to improve the country's infrastructure while Congress washes their hands of it and instead wants TransCanada and their cronies to build a pipeline.

Even if the KXL creates 5000 jobs temporarily that means the Republicans are turning their back on the American people, the investment for a better infrastructure so they can cut taxes and pad the pockets of cronies without spending a dime of tax dollars.

For every one job President Obama's plan would create, the Republicans create .005 jobs. Who is responsible for the deteriorating USA infrastructure and lack of good paying jobs in the construction sector? Grover Norquist and his pledge.

The Congress are spineless to their cronies and dangerous in protecting the lives of Americans from deteriorating infrastructure.

August 4, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS  — Flying over Minneapolis’ (click here) collapsed highway bridge, President Bush got a bird’s-eye view Saturday of the concrete slabs and twisted steel that once spanned the Mississippi River.

The president’s Marine One helicopter circled the site several times during a 10-minute tour, allowing him to gaze down upon the muddy waters where some bodies are still trapped. He saw pieces of the highway littered with vehicles, including a school bus hugging a guard rail. Rescue boats below helped in the search for victims.

Later, Bush put on an orange and red hard hat and walked around the bridge site. Yards from the school bus, he stood with Gary Babineau, a construction worker who helped rescue children after the collapse.

Bush also planned to receive briefings on recovery efforts and meet with families and some of the victims....

Welcome back to life with Republican majorities.

"Have a careful Christmas."

I don't think the issue surrounding "The Interview" is important enough to clog the media with the idea of Freedom of Speech. It is Christmas Day, haven't we had enough of tensions on Christmas Day? 

I really have to blame the industry for the lack of patron security. It was the movie theaters that failed, not the First Amendment.

To believe movie theaters have to be sensitive to the public and they failed this time. They need to develop a sense of security to the public and have it in place as a value to the consumer. Security is important and I sincerely believe the theaters didn't make enough noise about the federal government securing them when all this began more than a decade ago.

I attend movie from time to time on Christmas. I think "War Horse" opened on Christmas and the Tweens were all about it that year. We went to a late afternoon Matinee and they loved it. Having movies open on Christmas Day is important. The theaters have to pay attention to the public and the safety of the public otherwise they aren't in business. I think this had to happen.

December 22, 2011
By Richard Corliss

How many Steven Spielbergs are there, anyway? (click here) One Spielberg released a 3-D animated comedy yesterday: The Adventures of Tintin. Another has an emotionally urgent live-action epic opening Christmas day: War Horse, the story of a boy who so loves his horse that he follows it into World War I. These Spielbergs: they contain multitudes—vast crowd scenes....

It is a cousin thing on Christmas Day. The gifts that age group receives are more sophisticated and social. Clothes, electronics. The littlest people want to play with their toys, but, the Tweens like the socializing of being in the theater together. It was a bonding thing between cousins that day. It was nice. 

Why have them all worried about a stupid threat? It makes no sense to state to these wonderful young people, "...there is a threat at the theaters, you know? Do you still want to go? I don't want to here how we get there and everyone turns chicken, okay?" No, no, no. That sort of upset scenario doesn't belong near our Tweens or otherwise on Christmas. The theaters weren't ready. It's silly to think something like this can effect young people on Christmas Day. 

The canary in the coal mine. I think it is the change in air pressure that alerted the Warblers.

A 9 gram bird will be more sensitive to air pressure changes than other animals. A storm can destroy their nests and kill them even if shelter in trees. It is interesting. Nature really does exceptional things.

December 18, 2014
By Jonathan Webb

...After disappearing to Colombia for the winter, (click here) 10 of the tagged warblers returned in April 2014. The team was in the field observing them when they received advance warning of the tornadoes.

"We evacuated ourselves to the waffle house in Caryville, Tennessee, for the one day that the storm was really bad," Dr Streby said.

Elsewhere in the US the storm had more drastic consequences. At least 84 tornadoes caused 35 fatalities and more than $1bn (£0.6bn) in property damage.

After the storm had blown over, the team recaptured five of the warblers and removed the geolocators.

These are tiny devices weighing about half a gram, which measure light levels. Based on the timing and length of the days they record, these gadgets allow scientists to calculate and track the approximate location of migratory birds.

In this case, all five indicated that the birds had taken unprecedented evasive action, beginning one to two days ahead of the storm's arrival.

"The warblers in our study flew at least 1,500km (932 miles) in total," Dr Streby said.

They escaped just south of the tornadoes' path - and then went straight home again. By 2 May, all five were back in their nesting area....

January 29, 2014
By Anna McKenzie

Creative Loafing: How are you arguing the case in court? (click here)Miller W. Shealy Jr.: We're proceeding on two grounds. First, a motion for after-discovery evidence and for a new trial under criminal procedural rules of the state. I have filed motions requesting coram nobis, a 500-year-old writ dating back to English common law. It's fallen out of use in criminal cases, but basically allows a court to correct certain legal errors for people who have been unjustifiably treated. It's a last best hope kind of thing. Even in 1944, to be arrested at the end of March and dead by June and not have an appeal was a rare thing. His family wasn't even allowed to see him. It's extreme injustice.

Why did the family re-open the case now?All of his full siblings are still alive. They're hurt, they're angry and they want their family name cleared. Apparently, everyone up in the Manning and Clarendon County area knows about this. It's local legend.

What are the case's chances, and what comes next?It's hard to say. It's a different case legally. There's also no square authority against us, so we're plowing new ground. We may be making some new law. After about 20 days, we'll be called into court and the judge will issue a ruling.

December 18, 2014

By Lindsey Bever

It took 10 minutes to convict him and 70 years to exonerate him after his execution. (click here)

“[The police] were looking for someone to blame it on, so they used my brother as a scapegoat,” his sister Amie Ruffner told WLTX-TV earlier this year....

If you need inspiration, this should do it.

Matthew 18:12-14 New International Version (NIV)

12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.

Matthew 11:28-30New International Version (NIV)

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Homeless teens are twice likely to die than their peers.

The Duke of Cambridge and his lovely wife paid a visit yesterday to "Centrepoint," (click here) a shelter for homeless young people from ages 16 - 25. 

It is estimated there are approximately 15,000 teens facing homelessness this winter in Great Britain. I was surprised when I read that. I can only guess how many teens are homeless in the USA this winter.

It was noted in an article on "E" when the Duke and Duchess were joking about each other's hair or lack of it.

"Hair for an Heir" (click here). 

This is an article in the Washington Post a year ago.

December 20, 2014
By Bernardine

It’s the holiday season.  Most of us are going to parties,  buying and wrapping  presents and planning warm, cozy gatherings with family and friends. But for homeless  youth,  those under the age of 18 who lack parental, foster or institutional care, the holiday season can be a nightmare....

...However, in its most recent report about this population,  the  Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the U.S. Department of Justice estimated that there are 1.6 million homeless and runaway youth in this country. Most are  between the ages of 15-17 years old . They are equally divided between males and females.  About a third are black and studies show that almost half identify as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender (LGBT).  LBGT youth are at particular risk of homelessness because they are so often rejected by their families, schools and communities....

DoSomething.org (click here)
19 West 21st St, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10010
(212) 254-2390

DoSomething.org makes the world suck less.One of the largest orgs for young people and social change, our 3.2 million members tackle campaigns that impact every cause, from poverty to violence to the environment to literally everything else. Any cause, anytime, anywhere. *mic drop

11 Facts about Homeless Teens (click here)

DoSomething.org wants volunteers to place posters in town so the homeless teens will find resources for help.

Sign up for facts on youth homelessness and a ready-to-print flyer. You'll also receive tips on where to post flyers around your town.

From Wikileaks

December 19, 2014
By Philip Dorling

...According to a leaked document (click here) by the CIA's Directorate of Intelligence, "high value targeting" (HVT) involving air strikes and special forces operations against insurgent leaders can be effective, but can also havenegative effects including increasing violence and greater popular support for extremist groups.

The leaked document is classified secret and "NoForn" (meaning not to be distributed to non-US nationals) and reviews attacks by the United States and other countries engaged in counter-insurgency operations over the past 50 years.

The CIA assessment is the first leaked secret intelligence document published by WikiLeaks since 2011. Led by Australian publisher Julian Assange, the anti-secrecy group says the CIA assessment is the first in what will be a new series of leaked documents relating to the US agency.

The 2009 CIA study lends support to critics of US drone strikes in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen by warning that such operations "may increase support for the insurgents, particularly if these strikes enhance insurgent leaders' lore, if non-combatants are killed in the attacks, if legitimate or semi-legitimate politicians aligned with the insurgents are targeted, or if the government is already seen as overly repressive or violent"....

This is typical of the stenographic journalism that existed throughout the Bush White House.

"My Pet Goat"





The American Press is already surrendering to yet another Bush before he actually announces any candidacy. "Please, please I need my press pass."

...And what was (click here) the urgency in Card’s voice? I can tell you this: If you work for a public official and need him or her to immediately drop everything and come with you for an emergency briefing, no matter what the assembled media might report, then you would just tell the official that. You wouldn't whisper a lengthy explanation in their ear in front of a dozen news cameras. It was absurd to think that Card urged the president to leave the event and that the president just ignored him. It seemed far more likely that the president was told: It’s bad, but we’re on top of it, and we’ll be ready to brief you in a few minutes, so sit tight. Bush would have concluded that his highly competent military and intelligence advisers were forming a game plan. Rather than make a sudden exit from a public event, one that would trigger unhelpful speculation about an emerging crisis, he wrapped the event up quickly but casually. I had a hard time saying that was unreasonable....

The American Press is all about the direction of the public movie theaters because of a so called comedy where people are asked to end the life of the North Korea dictator, but, when it comes to the fact Bush was informed of the first attack on the trade towers before he went into the Florida classroom; that is okay. Nothing to worry about there. 

As if that wasn't enough, September 11, 2001 was 36 days after the CIA warned of attacks within the USA. Why is that always forgotten like it never happened? Why is that?

Kindly remember that number 36 days...

So 36 days after the PDB alerting the President of the United States of America, Bush is riding in his motorcade when he receives news that one of the World Trade Towers was hit by a large commercial airliner and there are definitely causalities.

Bush disregarded the news of the attack by entering a Florida classroom to read "My Pet Goat" to a room full of 1st Graders, I think it was. Could their teacher had been told she would have to carry on without the visit because of an urgent matter in the country? They could have told the teacher the President would reschedule. Is that what happened? No, Bush liked his PR far better than his job in the White House. 

And what is that mess, "We got this one." Cheney? Cheney is the man of the hour that stated to Senator Feinstein, "We won't get to it (the PDB) for another six months?" Then she was more insistent and stated, "But, Dick the PDB states within 3 months." Cheney disregarded a US Senator focused on the alert by the CIA and simply got on with his day. THAT CHENEY?

President George Walker Bush was the worst president the USA has ever had and now the American Press is ready to kiss the ring of his brother. 

OMG, here we go again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kindly recall as well the FACT that Norad never scrambled to stop the attacks soon enough during the Bush White House. Okay? I think that is a really good fact to remember, too.