Oil Prices Hit $100 Per Barrel

NEW YORK –  Oil prices hit $100 per barrel Wednesday as forces loyal to Libya's Moammar Gadhafi clashed with protesters expanding their control over parts of that OPEC nation.

In afternoon trading benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery was up $3.48, or 3.7 percent, at $98.90 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices climbed as high as $100 earlier in the day, hitting triple digits for the first time since Oct. 2, 2008. WTI has jumped 18 percent since Valentine's Day.

In London, Brent crude added $5.33, or 5 percent, at $111.11per barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

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Rhode Island City Issues Layoff Notices To All Teachers

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The financially troubled city of Providence on Tuesday issued layoff notices to all its nearly 2,000 teachers because city officials say they must make an unknown number of cuts in the budget, and they want "maximum flexibility."

State law requires school departments to notify teachers by March 1 if they will be laid off the following school year.

The notices do not mean that the teachers will lose their jobs, just that they could at the end of the year.

School Superintendent Tom Brady on Tuesday wrote to teachers that the school budget outline for the next academic year is dire, with a projected deficit of nearly $40 million.

Providence Teachers Union President Steve Smith told The Providence Journal the decision was "beyond insane" and creates chaos and anxiety among teachers.

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Allen West To CAIR: 'Don't Blow Sunshine Up My Butt'

One of the members of the Class of 2010 in the U.S. House of Representatives has revealed he has little patience for the politically correct arguments that Islam is, in fact, a religion of peace and nonaggression.

"Don't try to blow sunshine up my butt," U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., warned a member of a town hall meeting audience who had challenged him to identify a single verse in the Quran that tells Muslims to attack America.

The comments came earlier this week at Pompano Beach, Fla., during a question-and-answer time at his meeting. A questioner identified by the Palm Beach Post as Nezar Hamze, executive director for a branch of the Council for American Islamic Relations, confronted West, demanding that he point out where in the Quran are the orders for Muslims to attack America.

"You recently told the Marines that the terrorists that attacked the United States, the people that are attacking America, are followingIslam, and they are following the instructions of the Quran," he said.

"So, a very simply question. I'm not going to take a lot of your time. Can you show me one verse in this Quran where it says to attack America, attack Americans, or attack innocent people?" he said.

West noted the Quran was written in the 8th or 9th centuries and America didn't exist at the time, but noted, "The truth is out there." He cited the multiple Quranic references to attack and kill "infidels."

He started listing a series of battles before he was drowned out by applause and cheering from the audience.

"It (Islam) became violent," West continued when the cheering died down. "Something happened when Mohammed enacted the Isra, and he left Mecca and went out to Medina. It became violent. You explain it to me.

"Maj. Hasan was shouting allahu akbar. The people that flew those planes … were shouting allahu akbar. I've been on the battlefield my friend," he said.

"Don't try to blow sunshine up my butt and tell me…..," he said, to more applause.

The Muslim activist responded, "I'm ashamed to be here with all of these people when you attack Islam, you attack…"

An audience member interrupted with, "You attacked us!"

West said, "I went to Muslim countries to try to defend the freedom of Muslim people. Don't come up here to try to criticize me. Put the microphone down and go home."

There's more here, including video

[Don't you love this guy? -- Editor]

Only 39 Percent Of Wisconsin Public-School 8th Graders Proficient In Math

Only 39 percent of the eighth graders in Wisconsin public schools are proficient or better in mathematics, according to the U.S. Department of Education, despite the fact that Wisconsin spends more per pupil in its public schools than any other state in the Midwest.

In the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests administered by the U.S. Department of Education in 2009—the latest year available—only 31 percent of Wisconsin public-school eighth graders earned a “proficient” rating while another 8 percent earned an “advanced” rating. The other 61 percent of Wisconsin public-school eighth graders earned ratings below “proficient,” including 40 percent who earned a rating of “basic” and 21 percent who earned a rating of “below basic.”

The test also showed that the mathematics test scores of Wisconsin public-school eighth graders have remained almost flat since 1996 while inflation adjusted per-pupil spending has significantly increased.  

Wisconsin’s per pupil spending on public school students increased from $6,517 in 1996 to $10,791 in 2008. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation calculator the $6,517 that Wisconsin spent per pupil in 1996 dollars equaled $8,942 in 2008 dollars. That means that from 1996 to 2008, Wisconsin public schools increased their per pupil spending by $1,849—or 20.7 percent--in real terms while adding only one percentage point to their average eighth grader’s math score.

The $10,791 that Wisconsin spent per pupil in its public elementary and secondary schools in fiscal year 2008 was more than any other state in the Midwest.

(More)

Yesterday, we told you that TWO THIRDS of those same Wisconsin eighth graders could not read proficiently.

It's quite interesting to note that the Wisconsin TEACHERS that are producing these stellar results earned a combined $75,587 in total average compensation – wages and benefits – in 2010, according to figures from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI).

We just thought you'd like to know that.

It might help you keep your perspective when you're tempted to feel sorry for them as they (illegally) walk off their jobs to protest, after being asked to shoulder just a little more of the financial burden for their health insurance and retirement like the other 88% of the working population.

Democrat Urges Unions To 'Get A Little Bloody When Necessary'

Sometimes it's necessary to get out on the streets and "get a little bloody," a Massachusetts Democrat said Tuesday in reference to labor battles in Wisconsin.

Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.) fired up a group of union members in Boston with a speech urging them to work down in the trenches to fend off limits to workers' rights like those proposed in Wisconsin.

"I’m proud to be here with people who understand that it’s more than just sending an email to get you going," Capuano said, according to the Dorchester Reporter. "Every once and awhile you need to get out on the streets and get a little bloody when necessary."

Political observers have been the lookout for potentially incendiary rhetoric in the wake of January's shooting in Tucson, Ariz., where Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D) survived an assassination attempt, six were killed, and 12 others were injured.

Political rhetoric has become especially heated in Madison, Wis., where Republican Gov. Scott Walker has proposed major labor reforms that sparked more than a week's worth of rowdy protests at the state capitol.

"We take security seriously, whether it's for me, the lieutenant governor and all 132 members of the state legislature, Democrats or Republicans alike, because there's a lot of passion down here," Walker said Tuesday on MSNBC about his safety in Wisconsin. "And particularly when we see people coming in being bussed in from other states, that's what worries us."

More here

Wildlife Photos From Five Years Ago

I could be wrong but I believe these images I took were what started our Wildlife Photos some five years ago. Anyhow, they're pretty cool.

FIVE Years Ago Today

I was five years ago today former Mayor Barrie Tilghman called a Press Conference to announce a letter I personally drafted in which I stated she was not only a waste of my time, she was a waste of good sperm.

Of course, she didn't read the entire letter that described what brought me to such a point, nor did the Press have any interest in such. More importantly, why would someone in the  position of Mayor choose to go public with a private e-mail and state such words.

It couldn't be because she was offended, (holding a press conference) and she even said she had been called worse. It was these darn BLOGS that she was going after. Many had advised Barrie to just keep quiet about it and hope they just go away. Instead, Tilghman created a frenzy, encouraging ALL of the Daily Times readers, WBOC & WMDT viewers to go to this SBYNEWS.COM Blog and see just how hateful they are.

Hence the bombardment of hits and the major birth of Salisbury News. Thanks for the memories Barrie.

Baltimore Cops Arrested In Corruption Probe

Authorities accuse officers of taking money from residents to avoid having cars towed

Authorities say Baltimore police officers were arrested as part of a joint federal and city corruption probe involving a city towing company.

A news conference with U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein, FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard McFeely and Baltimore Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld is planned for 3 p.m. EST Wednesday.

As many as a dozen officers were taken into custody, The Baltimore Sun reported.

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BREAKING NEWS:

White House won't defend constitutionality of Defense of Marriage Act

Dog Found In Salisbury

Hello, we found this dog at M&T bank on route 13. Its a very friendly boxer, female, well taken care of, blue collar, approx 1-2 years old. We work at Peninsula Cardiology and have no place to keep her so we are taking it to the humane society. Animal control was busy on another call and not able to help right away. Hope the owner finds her. She is a sweetie.

Barrie Comegys Will Do ANYTHING for Political Payback

As they slither out of office, the corrupt Barrie Comegys crew are showing that they will do ANYTHING to attack their political opponents. This includes attempting to circumvent the normal, legal, political process.

Salisbury voters should note that the SAPOA-endorsed crew of Gary Comegys, Louise Smith and Shanie Shields are attempting an end run around Mayor Jim Ireton’s recent veto of council’s legislation to strip councilwomen Debbie Campbell and Terry Cohen of health insurance coverage. Their original, politically motivated attempt was transparent, but fair. Now they are trying to amend the city’s charter on the EVE OF AN ELECTION! To add insult to injury, the Barrie Comegys serpents are afraid to make their attempt before the cold light of PAC-14’s cameras. Instead, they will sleaze this measure through on Friday afternoon – when the hardworking, tax paying citizens are busy working – even though a regular council meeting is scheduled for 3 DAYS LATER!

WHY?

Why are Gary and Louise SO intent on stripping their council opponents of health care coverage? (Shanie Shields is a non-factor in these matters. She will merely vote the way her SAPOA masters instruct – which means to do ANYTHING to harm Campbell and Cohen.) Barrie Comegys will attempt to explain that this is saving the taxpayers money. In fact, it is. It will save each citizen a penny or two a year. If this were coming from someone else, this might not be so laughable. Comegys has helped to pad the pockets of developers with MILLIONS of taxpayers dollars during his eight years on council. One of Smith’s first acts on council was to amend the charter to permit a double-digit TAX INCREASE!

Any claim by Smith, Comegys, or Shields that they are looking out for the city’s taxpayers (unless they happen to be members of SAPOA) is a LIE. So … Why are they really doing it? The answer is simple. Gary, Louise, and Shanie leech off of the taxpayers for their pensions and health care. By ending the practice of allowing council members to join the city’s health insurance (at the same cost of a regular city employee), they are putting a hardship on Cohen in particular.

WHY HIDE?

Why does Barrie Comegys feel the need to do this in relative secrecy? They have attempted this measure – TWICE. Both times the mayor has vetoed their attempts. They don’t have the votes to override and simply don’t want the public to see their transparent political chicanery. Even though Comegys and Smith are “retiring” (before they are ridden out of town on rails), SAPOA has other candidates on the ballot this spring. They don’t want them to lose votes. If this were aired in the cold light, that is precisely what may happen.

It should be noted that the Daily Times failed to give this a mention in today’s article on yesterday’s work session. I wasn’t aware that my local paper had gotten so thick that the DT had to cut back on important news.

IS THIS LEGAL?

In a word – yes. They can hold their meeting, away from the cameras and public eye. Barrie Comegys can pass a resolution to amend the charter with three (3) votes. However, that’s when the real fun starts.

There is a difference of opinion as to whether the mayor may veto a resolution. Many, including myself, have argued that a resolution cannot be vetoed. However, City Attorney Paul Wilber ruled several years ago that a mayor could. Will he reverse himself now that it is Mayor Ireton instead of Mayor Tilghman?

Who knows?

Regardless, Ireton should veto the measure on principle. A new council will be sworn in on April 25th. Let them vote on a charter change IF one is necessary. If the new council members are so principled and opposed to council members receiving these benefits they can opt out. However, if they receive their daily bread from the taxpayers – like Comegys, Smith, and Shields – they need to be very careful in trying to make political hay out of this issue. Hypocrisy doesn’t sell very well.

SALISBURY: AN EARLY WARNING ABOUT THE “BOOTH STREET” HOUSING PROJECT

Wicomico County’s “Housing Authority” is trying to screw City residents by getting a western shore developer – Cornerstone Development, LLC” -- to buy the dilapidated 100 unit project and redevelop it (after demolition) with even more (168) apartments – provided that the site is annexed into the City to get the zoning needed for higher density development. What is probably the most crime ridden part of this County is now the problem of the Sheriff’s office, so why should the City want to take on that burden – especially as the developer will want huge tax breaks and no impact fees.

But – hold the phone – the County could rezone the project site to allow the higher density – and thereby avoid the need for it to be annexed into the City. We will keep you involved about this late breaking scam.

Nun Kicked Out Of Convent For Facebook Use

We've heard stories about Facebook usage affecting people's jobs before, but now the social network has gotten someone kicked out of a religious order.

The Telegraph reports that María Jesús Galán, a nun at the Santo Domingo el Real convent in Toledo, Spain, has been asked to "leave the convent after disagreements over her online activities." In other words: She's been glued to the computer just a bit too much.

Apparently the 54-year old has been nicknamed "Sister Internet" by her fellow nuns and made a habit of surfing the Internet after winning a well-publicized award:

In 2008, she won a local government prize for her painstaking work scanning the pages of precious texts held in the convent's library.
The award made headlines and she soon had scores of friends worldwide connecting through her Facebook page.

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A Slow And Painfull Death Of A Newspaper

With other outside Newspapers looking in and possibly taking over the marketplace with a FREE Paper, the end of the Daily Times could be closer than you think.

The Daily Times continues to make major mistakes, the last one was shutting down a $3.5 million press housed right here in Salisbury. Why is this such a serious matter, because their deadline gets bumped up a few hours and as I could see from this mornings paper, they're two days behind in news and they can't do anything about it.

Salisbury News announced 2 days ago that gas prices would quickly skyrocket and today the Daily Times has finally gotten on board. What's going to happen when a story breaks at 9 PM on a Monday. The quickest they can get the story published is the Wednesday paper.

It's the beginning of the end, no doubt about it. While may of us have traditionally purchased Newspapers and enjoyed getting up in the morning with a cup of coffee and the paper, those days are gone too. Why, because the younger generation follows the Internet. They get their cup of coffee and sit in front of a monitor and get news probably faster than the Daily Times does anyway.

So where does that leave us. Well, municipalities still rely on Newspapers to publish legal notices and so forth but Congress is looking at changing those laws to allow that same information to be published on line. If that happens any time soon it will be the end of all Newspapers. Newspapers make so much money, (especially right now with foreclosures) in their advertising it isn't funny.

For example, the business card size ads you see here on Salisbury News can run you up to $600.00 for ONE DAY in a local Newspaper. Salisbury News charges $100.00 a MONTH for that same ad. 30 more days for $500.00 less a month! Wait until you see what happens when the legal ads come to Salisbury News.

Its only a matter of time before they sell out or close their doors. On a final note, the City of Salisbury has given the Daily Times tax breaks, (Enterprise Zone) they no longer deserve. The Press isn't being used any more, therefore they should not be reconsidered for such breaks. They no longer employ 200 people, more like 20 now. If the Mayor and Council want to impose impact fees, well, they better research the companies that are no longer performing. Why should the taxpayers pay for the Daily Times to get breaks when they're no longer providing jobs to the community.

In Fact: How many companies throughout the state of Maryland are performing as represented in their Enterprise Zone applications and what is the state doing doing to stay on top of this?

Budget Deficits, Pension Plans, And The Seeds Of Rebellion

“Is the world finally cracking up?” we wondered aloud in these pages earlier this week. From the look of events unfolding across the volatile Middle East and North Africa region, it certainly seemed so.

Governments are toppling, buildings are ablaze and protesters are “speak-to-tweeting” their way to freedom…of a sort.

But what about closer to home, back in the belly of the empire? It’s one thing for far-flung outposts to collapse, for the “uncivilized,” “unwashed” masses beyond the gates to storm their capital buildings and raise hell. But surely that couldn’t happen here, could it?

Of course it could. The existence of the state virtually guarantees it!

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Rahm Emanuel Wins Chicago Mayoral Race

Ex-White House chief of staff to replace 6-term Mayor Richard Daley

CHICAGO — Former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel was elected mayor of Chicago on Tuesday, easily overwhelming five rivals to take the helm of the third-largest U.S. city as it prepares to chart a new course without the retiring Richard M. Daley.

With 97 percent of the precincts reporting, Emanuel had trounced five opponents with 55 percent of the vote — a margin that allowed him to avoid an April runoff. He needed more than 50 percent of the vote to win outright.

It was the city's first mayoral race in more than 60 years without an incumbent on the ballot and the first in more than two decades without Daley among the candidates. Daley and his father have led Chicago for more than 43 out of the last 56 years.

Emanuel called the victory "humbling" and thanked Daley for his lifetime of service, saying the outgoing mayor had "earned a special place in our hearts and our history."

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Lockdown For Transportation Trust Fund Examined, Questioned

A constitutional amendment that would lock down the money in the transportation trust fund was supported by lawmakers, local officials, business people and petroleum lobbyists – but financial analysts and some delegates questioned why such a measure is needed. The bill, proposed in the House by Del. Susan Krebs, was debated in front of the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday afternoon. Krebs, a Carroll County Republican, said that there are myriad transportation needs in the state, and not always enough money to make them happen. Proceeds of the transportation trust fund, which was created in 1971, are meant to be spent solely on transit needs.

Continue Reading...

Government Shutdown Would Hit Local Economy Hard

WASHINGTON - The possibility of a federal government shutdown could affect you and your community, even if you don't work for the government.
 
"The federal worker who wouldn't be paid for the time that they're not working, that has tax implications for Montgomery County, Prince George's County, the District of Columbia, Fairfax, (and) Arlington," says Jim Dinegar, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Washington Board of Trade.
 
The loss of tax money would come at a time when many state and local governments are already hurting for cash.

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Advocates, Farmers To Expose Influence Of Agribusiness Giants

Amid Farm Bureau Lawsuit, Activists Detail Efforts to Fight Clean Water Protections

WHAT

Environment Maryland will release a new study on the political influence of major agribusiness companies and their efforts to undermine laws that protect rivers, streams, and treasured waterways like the Chesapeake Bay.  The report, Growing Influence: the Political Power of Agribusiness and the Fouling of America’s Waterways, includes an analysis of data from Maryland and throughout the country.  Advocates and farmers will detail examples of environmental policy and enforcement getting blocked by agribusiness interests.

WHY

Agricultural pollution is one of the main causes of poor water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and other waterways throughout the country.  The American Farm Bureau Federation has filed suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to prevent them from enforcing the Clean Water Act.  Meanwhile Congress is considering budget amendments that would tie the hands of federal agencies and restrict them in carrying out their responsibilities under existing laws.

WHEN

11:00am, Thursday, Feb. 24

WHERE

Lawyer’s Mall, in front of State House

100 State Circle, Annapolis, MD 21401

VISUALS

Backdrop of State House

WHO

Sen. Roger Manno, Maryland State Senate, District 19

Del. Tom Hucker, Maryland House of Delegates, District 20

Carole Morison, Farmer and Activist (former chicken grower for Perdue Farms, Inc.)

Michael Tabor, Farmer and Activist

Ruth Berlin, Executive Director, Maryland Pesticide Network

Tommy Landers, Policy Advocate, Environment Maryland

Wisconsin Dems: Heroes Or Cowards?

Multisource political news, world news, and entertainment news analysis by Newsy.com

Fourteen Democratic lawmakers from Wisconsin are still absent in protest of what they call the governor's "union-busting" bill.

STATEMENT FROM GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY ON MARYLAND’S RETENTION OF ITS TRIPLE A BOND RATING

ANNAPOLIS, MD (February 23, 2011) – Governor Martin O’Malley today issued the following statement regarding Maryland retention of its Triple A bond rating by all three bond rating agencies:

“Once again, all three bond rating agencies have reaffirmed Maryland’s fiscal strength, even during difficult times. Because of the tough choices we’ve made together to create and save jobs and to practice fiscal responsibility, we are able to remain one of only eight states to retain the highest possible Triple A bond rating.”

“I want to thank Treasurer Kopp and Comptroller Franchot for their leadership and management of our State’s finances. As Maryland transitions into the new economy, and as we work together to balance our budget challenges for next year, it is our hope that we will continue to protect this seal of fiscal responsibility and maintain a strong commitment to improving conditions for Maryland businesses, creating jobs and fueling our economic progress.”

"I feel confident that working with the General Assembly, we can strengthen the funding of our pension system on behalf of our state employees and retirees."

Maryland remains one of only eight states to maintain the highest possible Triple A bond rating. In affirming the rating, Standard & Poor’s noted “Maryland’s economic strength and historically strong financial and debt management policies.” Fitch noted that “the state’s economy is returning to growth after a recession” and Moody’s mentions that the rating “reflects Maryland’s strong financial management policies, stable economy with high personal income levels, and ability to maintain positive available reserves despite sustained pressure on its budget.”

What’s Really Going On With Wisconsin’s Budget

Is there really a budget crisis in Wisconsin? What are the other issues? Here’s our quick breakdown of the basics.

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Snowman Slide In South Lake Tahoe

Obama Talks Jobs With Everyone — Except Jobless

President Barack Obama seems to have an aversion to the unemployed. On various jobs tours he has taken since the fall elections he has met with business leaders, students, plant works, and even community college presidents, but no one who actually needed a job, The Washington Post reported.

Obama has taken eight trips outside of Washington since November and has not met with either groups of unemployed or those representing them. Inquiries to the White House failed to turn up one incident of even a private meeting between the president and an unemployed person, the Post said.

The director of Ohio State’s Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity said Obama has reached out to the corporate world since the election. “Where is the olive branch to the working class community, the unions, the everyday folks?” John Powell added that it’s hard “to imagine a Democratic president doing a jobs tour and not meeting with people who are out of work or unions,” the Post reported.

More here

Gingrich: Obama Silent On Dictators

The Obama administration is maintaining a “conspiracy of silence” as anti-American dictatorships come under fire from their own people in the Middle East, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said on Fox News. The possible presidential candidate also charged the administration is missing an opportunity to replace a dictatorship in Libya.

President Barack Obama has issued statements condemning the violence used against demonstrators in Libya and called on Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to show restraint as has Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. However, the administration has been criticized for not taking a stronger line in support of the protesters.

Gingrich said that Libya and Iran, two countries that have recently had popular uprisings, are active opponents of the United States. Finding a way to replace those governments would benefit us, but the people in the streets get no U.S. support.

Read more

Wisconsin Governor Warns Of Layoff Notices

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker warns that state employees could start receiving layoff notices as early as next week if a bill eliminating collective bargaining rights isn't passed soon.

Walker said Tuesday in a statement to The Associated Press that the layoffs wouldn't take effect immediately. He didn't say which workers would be targeted.

Walker says in the statement, "Hopefully we don't get to that point."

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TRI-COUNTY COUNCIL - FORMER FILTRONIC COMTEK BUILDING PLAN MASSIVE EXPANSION

Just when you think your Federal, State, & Local governments are restraining themselves amidst one of the worse recessions in our nations history - then something comes along that sends shockwaves though your community.

At SBYnews we have been working diligently to try and educate our community about the inner workings - connecting the dots - following the money trail. Well here is yet another massive governmental expansion whereby private sector buildings are, once again, confiscated and removed from the tax rolls and almost simultaneously your government embarks on a spending spree with taxpayers money.
http://www.dicarlo1.com/planroom/TCC%20Shore%20Transit%20INDEX.pdf

But as Paul Harvey says - 'There's more to this story' - because there is more expansion being embarked upon as I'm writing this editorial piece.
http://mlis.state.md.us/2011rs/billfile/hb0085.htm

Not only has your government bought more property at the Civic Center - but there are mega millions being proposed to be spent elsewhere around the County.

Is there no end in sight? Very soon - a day of reckoning will beacon whereby the tally will be told and inflict economic pain on this community as has never been seen. And you can say that SBYnews tried warn our readers about the impending consequences of run-a-way government spending.

Caption This Photo

Senate Republicans To Withhold Democrats' Paychecks

Senate Republicans voted Tuesday to make Democrats hiding out in Illinois come back to Wisconsin to pick up their paychecks.

The Senate Committee on Organization voted on a 3-2 party line vote, with Republicans voting in favor and Democrats against, to change Senate rules so that senators who miss two consecutive floor days can no longer have their paychecks dropped automatically into their bank accounts. The vote was taken by paper ballot, which allowed Democrats to cast their votes from out-of-state.

Democrats who have already missed two consecutive floor sessions will now have to come to get their paychecks directly from Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) on the floor of the Senate.

More here

Public Unions Force Taxpayers To Fund Democrats

Everyone has priorities. During the past week Barack Obama has found no time to condemn the attacks that Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi has launched on the Libyan people.

But he did find time to be interviewed by a Wisconsin television station and weigh in on the dispute between Republican Gov. Scott Walker and the state's public employee unions. Walker was staging "an assault on unions," he said, and added that "public employee unions make enormous contributions to our states and our citizens."

Enormous contributions, yes -- to the Democratic Party and the Obama campaign. Unions, most of whose members are public employees, gave Democrats some $400 million in the 2008 election cycle. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the biggest public employee union, gave Democrats $90 million in the 2010 cycle.

Follow the money, Washington reporters like to say. The money in this case comes from taxpayers, present and future, who are the source of every penny of dues paid to public employee unions, who in turn spend much of that money on politics, almost all of it for Democrats. In effect, public employee unions are a mechanism by which every taxpayer is forced to fund the Democratic Party.

So, just as the president complained in his 2010 State of the Union address about a Supreme Court decision that he feared would increase the flow of money to Republicans, he also found time to complain about a proposed state law that could reduce the flow of money to Democrats.

Read more

Judge Who Tossed Obamacare To Issue Prompt Clarification

A federal judge who struck down the entire healthcare reform law said he will quickly consider an Obama administration request to clarify whether states must comply with it.

Last week, the administration asked the court to clarify that the 26 states that successfully challenged the healthcare overhaul in federal court must still comply with it as the challenge works its way through the appeals process. U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson ruled that law’s requirement for individuals to purchase insurance is unconstitutional, and therefore that the rest of the law is unconstitutional, because the provision is too central to making the law function.

In the aftermath of the Jan. 31 ruling from U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson, some states have declared the reform law dead. Florida, the leading state in the lawsuit, returned a pair of federal grants for implementing the law, and Alaska announced it wouldn't apply for a grant to plan the law's new health insurance exchanges.

Vinson is giving the plaintiffs — the 26 states and the National Federation of Independent Business — until Wednesday to respond to the administration's request, and the administration has an additional three days to respond to the plaintiffs.

In the order, Vinson seemed somewhat miffed by the administration’s request.

“Because I determined that the individual mandate could not be severed from the remainder of the [law], it was also necessary to declare the entire statute void,” he wrote. “The defendants have now, two and one-half weeks later, filed a motion to ‘clarify’ that order.”

[Sounds like a hint where this is going--  Editor]

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PUBLIC NOTICE: SPECIAL MEETING

In accordance with §SC2-4 of the Salisbury City Charter, a majority of the City Council have called for a Special Meeting to be held on Friday, February 25, 2011, for consideration of a Charter Amendment relating to elected officials participation in elective employee benefits.

The special meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m. in Conference Room 306 of the City/County Government Office Building (125 N. Division Street).

# # # # #

The City Council reserves the right to convene in closed session as permitted under the Annotated Code of Maryland 10-508(a)

House Bill 1107

Hi Joe:

Here is my take on this bill:

This was probably the work of Rich Hall, of the Maryland Department of Planning.  If this bill passes, the state wont have to fund the MALF program.  Think of the millions they save since the land values will surely decrease and the easement value will be worthless.  This is really downzoning directly from Annapolis with no local input.

Dick Morris: Conservatives Beating Back Unions In Wisconsin

Democracy is on the line in the streets of Madison, Wis. Will the popularly elected state legislature and governor (both now Republican for the first time in forever) get to run the state or will the union thugocracy, now crowding the streets, prevail?

The spectacle of Democratic legislators hiding out in the woods to avoid creating a quorum in their legislatures illustrates, more profoundly than anything else ever could, the extent to which we have lost control of our destiny and government to the public employee unions.

The teachers unions, the Service Employees, and AFSME have hijacked state government and are now holding them for ransom.

We are all citizens of Wisconsin now! Our freedom is on the line.

At last some real leaders are emerging within the Republican Party — the newly elected governors! Govs. Chris Christie (New Jersey), Mitch Daniels (Indiana), Scott Walker (Wisconsin) John Kasich (Ohio), Jim Corbett (Pennsylvania), Jan Brewer (Arizona), and Butch Otter (Idaho) are showing America how it is done.

The union mobs have taken to the streets in Wisconsin to protest hotly against having to pay 12.6 percent of their health insurance (the private sector average is 20 percent) and 5.8 percent of their pensions (private sector average is 7.5 percent). They want us to subsidize them so they can get to be richer than we are! Upward redistribution of income!

Gov. Scott Walker, the courageous, young Republican just elected in Wisconsin, also wants to limit teachers union bargaining to wages and benefits, but to leave work rules in the hands of school administrators.

His ideas are vital to good schools but outrageous to the entrenched defenders of bad education in the teachers unions.

The most innovative governor in America, and also a likely GOP contender for president, is Bush's former OMB Director Mitch Daniels.

He is pushing forward with an exciting bill for statewide choice in schools, limits on teacher collective bargaining, caps on salary increases, and tenure reform. He has already pioneered using Health Savings Accounts to reduce health insurance costs — voluntarily — for state workers.

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Dems Leave Indiana House, Stalling GOP Labor Bills

Indiana House Democrats have taken a cue from counterparts in Wisconsin, leaving the Statehouse and stalling action on a GOP-backed labor bill.

Only three of 40 House Democrats were in the chamber when Republican Speaker Brian Bosma tried to convene Tuesday, leaving it short of the two-thirds needed for a quorum.

The House came into session twice Tuesday morning, with only three of the 40 Democrats present. Those were needed to make a motion, and a seconding motion, for any procedural steps Democrats would want to take to ensure Republicans don’t do anything official without quorum.

With only 58 legislators present, there was no quorum present to do business. The House needs 67 of its members to be present.

House Speaker Brian Bosma said he did not know yet whether he would ask the Indiana State Police to compel the lawmakers to attend, if they can be found.

Tuesday’s fight was triggered by Republicans pushing a bill that would bar unions and companies from negotiating a contract that requires non-union members to kick-in fees for representation. It’s the latest in what is becoming a national fight over Republican attempts to eliminate or limit collective bargaining.

Gov. Mitch Daniels had warned his party late last year against pursuing so-called “right to work” legislation. While he agreed with it philosophically, he said it was a big issue that needed a state-wide debate and noted no Republican had run on this in the November election.

But now that his party is pursuing it, Daniels has not spoken against it. He has so far issued no statement, has held no news conference and has not been interviewed by any Indiana reporters in the Statehouse.

Union members who filled the Statehouse — an estimated 4,000 according to the Indiana State Police — held a rally, chanting such things as “Ditch Mitch” and “Save Our Families,” which he must have heard as he worked in his nearby Statehouse office.

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De Borchgrave: $400 Oil Imminent With Mideast Upheaval

d-winning journalist Arnaud de Borchgrave tells Newsmax that the increasingly volatile situation in the Middle East could quickly push the price of oil to $300 or even $400 a barrel.

De Borchgrave, who has interviewed Moammar Gadhafi six times, also says the Libyan leader is manic-depressive and is currently going through a manic phrase where he is “taking on the world.”

A 30-year veteran of Newsweek magazine, de Borchgrave is now director of the Transnational Threats Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, editor-at-large at United Press International and The Washington Times, and a Newsmax correspondent.

In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV, de Borchgrave discussed the impact that the uprisings in Libya, Iran and other Middle Eastern nations could have on the price of oil.

“This could get pretty bad because of what’s going on in Libya,” he says. “Libya pumps about 1.8 million barrels a day,” some of which is pumped out of the eastern region around Benghazi “which has now in effect seceded.

“Libya supplies around 74 percent of Europe’s oil and if that is cut, which it could very well be in the next few days, oil will be spiking again.”

The United States does not buy oil from Libya, but de Borchgrave points out that “oil is a global commodity and what hurts in one part of the world is bound to have an impact on other parts of the world.

“If you remove 1.8 million barrels per day, that’s taking quite a chunk out of the world oil market. To tell you to where the prices could spike, I really can’t tell. But if we were to have any trouble in the Straits of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf, you could see oil going up to two or three hundred dollars a barrel very quickly.”

Oil was selling at over $95 a barrel on Tuesday afternoon, and there’s no telling where prices at the pump — currently around $3.17 a gallon — could rise to if per-barrel oil prices soared to those levels, according to de Borchgrave.

Events in Iran, which has also recently been rocked by popular unrest, could in fact “drive oil up to $300 or $400 a barrel very quickly because we’re dealing with the Straits of Hormuz through which about 28 percent of the world’s oil passes every day,” de Borchgrave tells Newsmax.

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Airline Apologizes For Offering Only Pork On Israel Flight

UK budget airline easyJet apologized Tuesday to Jewish customers after the only food choices served on a flight from Israel were ham melts and bacon baguettes.

Passengers who follow the faith's ban on eating pork were forced to go hungry for the four-and-a-half hour journey from Tel Aviv to London.

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Job Applicant Required To Give Facebook Login: ACLU

For many Facebook users, the last person they would give their Facebook username and password to is their boss.

But Robert Collins, 29, said that in a background investigation for a position with the Maryland Department of Corrections, that was exactly what he was required to do.

"Here I am a U.S. citizen that hasn't broken any laws, committed any crimes," said Collins in a YouTube video, taped by the ACLU, "and a prospective, or in my case, an employer, looking at my personal communications, my personal posts, my personal pictures."

The corrections officer said he was told this was a department policy.

A spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services said that's not correct.

"We don't require anyone to give us a password," the department told NBC4. "The ACLU drastically misrepresented this."

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Emergency Room Doctor On "Culture Crisis"

Pictured  above is a young physician by the name of  Dr.  Starner Jones. His short letter to the White House accurately puts the blame on a "Culture Crisis" instead of a "Health  Care  Crisis".
Dear Mr.  President:

During my shift in the Emergency Room  last night, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient  whose smile revealed an expensive shiny gold tooth, whose  body was adorned with a wide assortment of elaborate and  costly tattoos, who wore a very expensive brand of tennis  shoes and who chatted on a new cellular telephone equipped with a popular R&B  ringtone.

While glancing over her patient chart,  I happened to notice that her payer status was listed as  "Medicaid"!

During my examination of her, the patient  informed me that she smokes more than one costly pack of  cigarettes every day and somehow still has money to buy pretzels and beer.

And, you and our Congress  expect me to pay for this woman's health care?   I contend that our nation's "health care  crisis" is not the result of a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses.

Rather, it is the result of  a "crisis of culture", a culture in which it is perfectly  acceptable to spend money on luxuries and vices while  refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid,  purchase health insurance.  It is a culture based in the irresponsible credo that "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of  me".

Once you fix this "culture crisis" that rewards irresponsibility and dependency, you'll be amazed at how quickly our nation's health care difficulties will  disappear.

Respectfully,

STARNER JONES,  MD

Septic Service Company

US Denounces Government Violence As "Unacceptable"

Washington - Still struggling to catch up with fast-moving events throughout the Middle East, the administration of President Barack Obama Tuesday joined a growing international chorus in denouncing efforts by the Libyan government to crush a growing uprising against the 42-year reign of Muammar Al-Gaddafi.

"The world is watching the situation in Libya with alarm," said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a statement released late in the day, a government holiday.

"The government of Libya has a responsibility to respect the universal rights of the people, including the right to free expression and assembly. Now is the time to stop this unacceptable bloodshed," the statement asserted. "We are working urgently with friends and partners around the world to convey this message to the Libyan government."

Washington’s statement followed by nearly half a day a stronger statement issued by the European Union’s (EU) 27 foreign ministers, who were meeting in Brussels. They said the Council of Foreign Ministers "condemns the ongoing repression against demonstrators in Libya and deplores the violence and death of civilians."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who reportedly spoke with Gaddafi early Monday, also demanded a halt to the violence, according to spokesman Martin Nesirky. Meanwhile several senior Libyan diplomats, including its deputy ambassador to the U.N., resigned their posts to protest their government’s repression. The U.N. Security Council is expected to take up Libya Tuesday morning.

"We find it impossible to stay silent," Libya’s deputy U.N. ambassador, Ibrahim Dabbashi, told reporters at U.N. headquarters, accusing the government of "genocide". "The Libyan mission will be in the service of the Libyan people rather than in the service of the regime," he said.

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Disgraced Former Tea Party Leader Calls On Right-Wing Activists To Pose As SEIU Organizers

National tea party groups like Americans for Prosperity have been bussing conservative activists to Madison, WI to confront protesters there standing up to Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) union busting. But Tea Party Nation and Mark Williams, the disgraced former chairman of Tea Party Express, who was forced to resign after making offensive racial comments, are calling for a more radical approach. In an email alert to supporters sent last night, Tea Party Nation promotes Williams’ “great idea” to impersonate SEIU organizers at upcoming labor rallies in an attempt to embarrass and discredit the union.

Williams lays out a highly dishonest and fairly involved scheme to have “plants” sign up on the SEIU website to be organizers for an upcoming rally, dress up in SEIU shirts, and to then make outrageous comments to reporters covering the events in order to “make the gathering look as greedy and goonish as we know that it is”:

That link will take you to an SEIU page where you can sign up as an “organizer” for one of their upcoming major rallies to support the union goons in Wisconsin. Here is what I am doing in Sacramento, where they are holding a 5:30 PM event this coming Tuesday: (1) I signed up as an organizer (2) with any luck they will contact me and I will have an “in” (3) in or not I will be there and am asking as many other people as can get there to come with, all of us in SEIU shirts (those who don’t have them we can possibly buy some from vendors likely to be there) (4) we are going to target the many TV cameras and reporters looking for comments from the members there (5) we will approach the cameras to make good pictures… signs under our shirts that say things like “screw the taxpayer!” and “you OWE me!” to be pulled out for the camera (timing is important because the signs will be taken away from us. [...]

Our goal is to make the gathering look as greedy and goonish as we know that it is, ding their credibility with the media and exploit the lazy reporters who just want dramatic shots and outrageous quotes for headlines. Even if it becomes known that we are plants the quotes and pictures will linger as defacto truth.

Williams is even hoping to make a few bucks off the idea, asking readers to “Please contribute!!!” as “I need to travel beyond Sacramento to the other SEIU rally cities and then Madison, and in short order!”

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Lincoln Impersonator Fined On Presidents Day

WASHINGTON, DC (WUSA) - Just like Abe Lincoln, Phill Howell is 6'4'' and has a thick beard. For years his friends have told him he looked so much like Abe he should play the part. So on Presidents Day, 2011, the 26-year-old decided to follow through on his friends advice. He never though he'd wind up on the other side of the law.

"I think the officers were doing their jobs, and I think that we broke the law," said Howell.

There was nothing wrong with his outfit: a bow-tie, black suit and top hat. Nor his thick, dark beard. But when he started reciting the Gettysburg Address at the top of the steps at the Lincoln Memorial, officers moved in.

"He just said we weren't allowed to give speeches without any kind of permit. It didn't matter what we said or agenda we were pushing. I said, 'It's Presidents Day. it's the Gettysburg Address!' He said, it doesn't matter," Howell said.

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Maryland Senate Set For Lengthy Gay Marriage Debate

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Maryland senators will spend most of the day engrossed in a debate over whether to make Maryland the sixth state in the nation to legalize gay marriage.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller has scheduled Wednesday for most of the floor debate over the same-sex marriage bill. The measure was approved by a Senate committee last week and could be sent to the House as early as next week.

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Delaware Jurors To Weigh Sentence In Police Killing

GEORGETOWN, Del. (AP) -- A jury that convicted a Maryland man of murder in the shooting of a Georgetown police officer will soon begin deliberating his fate.

Jurors were to receive final instructions from the judge and listen to closing arguments from attorneys Wednesday in the penalty hearing for 24-year-old Derrick Powell of Cumberland, Md.

Powell faces either the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole after being convicted earlier this month in the September 2009 shooting of patrolman Chad Spicer.

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I-Team Tracks Down Accused Scam Artist

BALTIMORE -- An untold number of people across the country claim one man has taken their money and stolen their memories.


The WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team tracked down Darien Small, a photographer who has people across the country looking for him -- many of them newlyweds.


Gerald and Adanna Ikedilo said they spent a great deal of time and money to hire someone to document what they considered to be one the most important days of their lives: their wedding day.


"The wedding day is very important," Adanna Ikedilo said. "It's probably, in the girl's life, the most important day of her life."

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Number Of Breakfasts Given To Md. Students Increases

By Joe Burris, The Sun (Baltimore)
Public schools in Maryland have increased the number of breakfasts provided to students over the past year, said an Anne Arundel County schools official Tuesday, as a national survey of teachers was released indicating that children regularly come to school hungry.

End Of Mercury Thermometers Is Near

By Frank D. Roylance, The Sun (Baltimore)While many Maryland residents probably still have them in their medicine cabinets, or on their walls, the retail sale of mercury thermometers has been banned in Maryland since 2002 because of mercury's hazards as a powerful neurotoxin. There are similar bans or restrictions in at least 17 other states, with more such legislation pending elsewhere, according to the Interstate Mercury Education and Reduction Clearinghouse.

Salisbury Jaycees Recognized As Top Chapter in State

SALISBURY, MD---The Salisbury Jaycees recently earned the Henry S. Giessenbier Memorial Award, presented annually to the No. 1 chapter in the state, during the Maryland Jaycees’ 2011 winter convention.

“For the eighth time since 1940, the Salisbury Jaycees have been named Maryland’s preeminent Jaycees chapter,” said Salisbury Jaycees President Travis Fisher. “This is quite an honor, and it validates what we’ve known all along: Our members and projects are the best in Maryland. We are proud of outgoing President David Engelhardt and the 2010 board of directors.”

Engelhardt was named the Maryland Jaycees’ 2010 Chapter President of the Year. He and the chapter will compete for national honors during the U.S. Junior Chamber’s annual convention this June in Chicago.

In addition, former Salisbury Jaycees President Jason Rhodes was inducted into the Maryland Jaycees Militia, granting him lifetime membership rights, the highest Jaycees honor in the state. He also was named a top performer in Maryland for the fourth quarter of 2010, in part due to his chairmanship of the chapter’s third annual Treat Street safe Halloween trick-or-treating initiative.

Overall, the Salisbury Jaycees took home top honors in four other areas: community, management and individual development, and international involvement. Former Salisbury Jaycees President and current Maryland Jaycees webmaster David Smith also won the Maryland Jaycees’ Hidden Hero Award for 2010.

Serving the Lower Eastern Shore since 1940, the Salisbury Jaycees is the area’s leading community services, social and leadership development organization for individuals ages 21-40. For more information call 410-749-0144, ext. 109, or visit the Jaycees’ website at www.salisburyjc.com.

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