Japan Close With New Power Line For Nuke Plant

Nuclear plant operators trying to avoid complete reactor meltdowns said Thursday that they were close to finishing a new power line that could end Japan's crisis.

Yet,  several ominous signs have also emerged: a surge in radiation levels, unexplained white smoke and spent fuel rods that U.S. officials said might be on the verge of spewing more radioactive material.

As fear, confusion and unanswered questions swirled around the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex, and Japan suffered myriad other trials from last week's earthquake and tsunami believed to have killed more than 10,000, its emperor took the unprecedented step of directly addressing his country on camera, urging his people not to give up.

"It is important that each of us shares the difficult days that lie ahead," Akihito said Wednesday. "I pray that we will all take care of each other and overcome this tragedy."

The 77-year-old emperor expressed his own deep concern about the "unpredictable" nuclear crisis. "With the help of those involved I hope things will not get worse," he said.

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko said at a congressional hearing in Washington that all the water is gone from the spent fuel storage pond of Fukushima Dai-ichi's Unit 4 reactor, but Japanese officials denied it. Hajime Motojuku, a spokesman for plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co., said the "condition is stable" at Unit 4.

Earlier, however, another utility spokesman said officials' greatest concerns were the spent fuel pools, which lack the protective shells that reactors have.

Japanese officials raised hopes of easing the crisis, saying early Thursday that they may be close to bringing power back to the plant and restoring the reactors' cooling systems. The earthquake and tsunami knocked out power and ruined backup generators.

The new power line would revive electric-powered pumps, allowing the company to control the rising temperatures and pressure that have led to at least partial meltdowns in three reactors. The company is also trying to repair its existing disabled power line.

Tokyo Electric Power spokesman Naoki Tsunoda said the new power line to the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant is almost finished and that officials plan to try it "as soon as possible," but he could not say exactly when.

About 180 emergency workers have been working in shifts to manually pump seawater into the overheating reactors to cool them and stave off complete meltdowns. They were emerging as heroes as their sacrifices became clearer, and as they stepped into circumstances in which no radiation suit could completely protect them.

Japan's health ministry made what it described as an "unavoidable" change Wednesday, more than doubling the amount of radiation to which the workers can be legally exposed.

"I don't know any other way to say it, but this is like suicide fighters in a war," said Keiichi Nakagawa, associate professor of the Department of Radiology at the University of Tokyo Hospital.

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More On The Reactors

There are two helicopters now working above Reactor 3 - NHK television. Each is capable of dropping 7.5 tonnes of water, it says.

Can see a white curtain of water dropping on the reactor from a helicopter, live on NHK TV.

It was feared yesterday that Reactor 3 might have released radioactive steam due to damage to its containment vessel.

Just saw a third load of water spraying from a chopper. Seems it was aimed at Reactor 4.

Now a 4th load has been dropped.

This is no easy task for the chopper crews. They can't afford to hover above the reactors because of the radiation so they are making the drops in passing.

These are CH-47 Chinook helicopters. Each would normally have a crew of three: pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer.

The reason Reactor 3 got the first shower is because of escaping smoke or steam, indicating water evaporating from the cooling pool, Reuters news agency notes.

And US nuclear experts believe there is no water left in Reactor 4's cooling pool, meaning radiation levels are extremely high there.

Let's recall what top US nuclear official Gregory Jaczko had to say about the risks facing the crews fighting to cool down the reactors: "It would be very difficult for emergency workers to get near the reactors. The doses they could experience would potentially be lethal doses in a very short period of time."

A lead plate is attached to the bottom of each chopper and the crew are wearing protective suits - NHK.

Eleven water cannon trucks are also on their way to the plant - NHK.

BBC

Water Being Applied To Reactors

A Tokyo police unit is preparing to use water cannon this morning to cool down Reactor 4 at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Japanese broadcaster NHK reports. The police say they are acting at the government's request.

Japan's defence ministry has given the go-ahead for spraying water on the reactor from helicopters - Japan's Kyodo news agency

A Japanese army helicopter is now dropping water on Reactor 3-- more helicopters are on their way to dump water on the reactor.

BBC

Middletown Woman Arrested After Leaving Her Child

Location:  Valero Gas Station, 891 S. DuPont Highway, New Castle, DE

Date of Occurrence:  Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 11:30 a.m.

Victim:  4 year old New Castle, DE female

Defendant: Jennifer Holmwood, 28, Middletown, DE

Charges:

-Reckless Endangering

-DUI (Fifth Offense)

Resume:  

New Castle- The Delaware State Police have arrested a 28 year old Middletown woman after she left her 4 year old daughter at a New Castle gas station late this morning.

The incident occurred at approximately 11:30 a.m. this morning as Jennifer Holmwood of the 200 block of Oak Acres Drive in Middletown, pulled her vehicle into the Valero Fuel Station located in the 800 block of S. DuPont Highway in New Castle in order to get gas. Holmwood escorted her four year old daughter to a portable bathroom outside of the fuel station, and then returned to her vehicle. Holmwood then drove off in her vehicle, leaving the four year old behind. Another customer of the station saw the child alone and escorted her inside where police were then contacted.

Troopers then escorted the juvenile to Troop 9 where they attempted to obtain her parents information. As this was occurring, troopers were called to respond to Lorewood Grove Road and Ratledge Road in Middletown where Jennifer Holmwood’s vehicle had become disabled. A passing motorist, who stopped to assist Holmwood, was advised by her that she could not find her daughter. The motorist then contacted 911 and it was then that responding troopers realized that Jennifer Holmwood was the mother of the four year old female.

Jennifer Holmwood was arrested and charged with the above crimes. The four year old juvenile was turned over to family members. She was not injured.

Bail information and a photo of Jennifer Holmwood are not available at this time.

Heroic Japanese Reactor Workers On 'Suicide Mission'

Japanese workers who are “not afraid to die” are struggling to head off a nuclear disaster at the stricken Fukushima reactors in an effort some are calling a “suicide mission.”

On Wednesday, 180 workers bravely headed back to the plant to pump water onto the over-heating reactors. They have been rotating in shifts of 50 men, nicknamed the “Fukushima Fifty.”

The workers had been pulled back, but they “later headed back into the reactor for difficult and dangerous work, wearing radiation suits and gas masks or oxygen tanks that provide little protection from the invisible radiation rays bombarding their bodies,” Britain’s Daily mail reported.

A source in contact with the emergency teams told CBS they were “not afraid to die” as they fight to stave off a meltdown.

Dr. Michio Kaku, a theoretical physicist, told ABC News: “We’re very close now to the point of no return. It’s gotten worse. We’re talking about workers coming into the reactor perhaps as a suicide mission and we may have to abandon ship.”

“They have volunteered, or been assigned, to pump seawater on dangerously exposed nuclear fuel.”

David Lochbaum, a nuclear safety expert with the Union of Concerned scientists, also said the workers could be on a suicide mission. He told National Public radio that radiation levels at some locations in the reactors “would be high enough that you would receive a lethal dose in something like 16 seconds.”

And Dr. Chandon Guha, a radiation expert at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, said of the reactor workers: “These are heroes.”

Read more

The Great Pollitt Pension Mystery

Did you know that Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt will earn a pension from the taxpayers of Wicomico County? Don’t feel bad, it seems that the Wicomico County Council didn’t know either.



A question was raised at yesterday’s council meeting as to who approved Pollitt’s pension. From the convoluted answers provided by county HR director Mike Thompson to councilwomen Gail Bartkovich and Stevie Prettyman, it appears that Pollitt may have approved the pension on his own. First Thompson cited a 2003 change to the county personnel manual. When that explanation failed (there wasn’t a county executive in 2003), Thompson claimed that council had to “disapprove” any changes. Councilwoman Stevie Prettyman slapped that down by citing the county charter, which requires all personnel manual changes be APPROVED by council. After a couple other tries, we heard the word “typo” mumbled by either Thompson or County Administrator Ted Shea.

Personnally, I don’t have a huge problem with the County Executive or council members being allowed to participate in the pension plan. What I have a problem with is the Executive, or his cronies, circumventing council AND the county charter.

That said, this trick / “oversight” will wind up costing Pollitt 4 – 8 years of pension benefits - depending on how you look at things and assuming that council is willing to grant the executive a pension after all. The Maryland constitution forbids altering an elected official’s compensation during his / her term of office. IF council wishes to grant him pension benefits, AND acts during this term, they can’t take effect until the next term – which begins in 2014.

City/MDE Partnership On "Linens" Building Moves Forward

Salisbury Mayor James Ireton, Jr. is pleased to announce that the Maryland Department of the Environment will be on site twice in the coming week at the "Linens of the Week" property on Anne Street in the Church Street neighborhood in Salisbury.

MDE will be on site Friday, March 18
th to first coordinate with Miss Utility and mark the areas where they will dig. Then March 22nd they will retrieve soil samples from different areas on the property.

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY PRESENTS FEDERAL PRIORITIES TO MARYLAND’S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION

WASHINGTON, DC (March 16, 2011) – Governor Martin O’Malley joined by members of the Executive Cabinet travelled to Capitol Hill today to formally present Maryland’s 2011 federal priorities to the State’s Congressional delegation.  Hosted by Senator Barbara Mikulski, Chair of the Maryland Delegation, and attended by the full Maryland Congressional delegation, Governor O’Malley presented priorities that create jobs and opportunity, protect the public’s safety, advance environmental sustainability, protect the health of all Marylanders, and help rebuild Maryland’s infrastructure.

“To make our children winners in the fight for our economic future, we must make the tough choices to spur innovation and create and save jobs, while improving public safety, public education and our quality of life,” said Governor O’Malley.  “Together with our federal partners, we can advance these initiatives and be a winner in this new economy.”

Governor O’Malley outlined the state’s federal priorities to reflect the Administration’s 15 strategic goals.  The goals were created during the O’Malley-Brown Administration’s first term to improve the quality of life in Maryland.  They are broadly categorized in four key areas – creating opportunity, security, sustainability and health, reflecting the challenges and opportunities we face as a state in the 21^st Century and in the new economy.

“These are tough times – Marylanders are stretched and strained. I want them to know I’m on their side, and so is the rest of the Maryland delegation,” Senator Mikulski said. “We have to make smart decisions to keep our innovation economy moving. We need to fight for jobs today and train our workforce for the jobs of tomorrow. I’m proud to work with Governor O’Malley to meet the day-to-day needs of Maryland and the long-term needs of our nation.”

The Governor highlighted specific areas for federal action, including:

Creating Jobs & Opportunity

Governor O’Malley outlined a number of important initiatives related to job creation and expanding opportunity, including the multi-year reauthorization of surface transportation programs that focus on transit-oriented development, improving passenger, and commuter and freight rail infrastructure.

In addition, Governor O’Malley urged support for President Obama’s call to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in order to leverage record state investments in the education of our children, and supplement the reforms laid out in Maryland’s Race to the Top Award.

Governor O’Malley also proposed the creation of competitive grants through the Workforce Investment Act for the innovation economy, preparing workers for high-growth, high-demand industries such as cyber security and biotechnology and investment in BRAC related projects and jobs.

Additionally, the Governor asked members to protect federal agencies that provide research grants and support federal programs and initiatives that spur innovation such as the America COMPETES Act and the Obama Administration’s Startup America.

Advancing Public Safety & Homeland Security

Governor O’Malley urged the maintenance of funding for the Byrne-JAG program, which will help achieve the Administration’s goal of reducing violent crime by 20% by 2012 and reducing violent crime against women and children by 25% by 2012.

In addition, Governor O’Malley urged the maintenance of funding levels for Maryland’s share of key Homeland Security Grant Programs so the state may continue to make progress on becoming a national leader in homeland security and preparedness.

Advancing Environmental Sustainability

Governor O’Malley outlined three legislative priorities to advance the Administration’s many sustainability-related goals.  Passage of the Chesapeake Clean Water and Ecosystem Restoration Act would help ensure that Bay restoration efforts remain a high priority for the EPA and that the watershed states are held accountable for successful implementation of their plans to achieve the pollution reduction targets.  To achieve the Administration’s goal of restoring the health of the Chesapeake Bay by 2020, the Governor urged support for critically needed nitrogen reduction technology for the Blue Plains Wastewater Treatment Plant.

In addition, Governor O’Malley encouraged extending incentives to attract offshore wind development to waters off Maryland’s coast, an initiative the Governor is also pursuing on the state level.

Advancing the Health of Marylanders

The Governor requested maintenance of funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program at the level of $5.1 billion recognizing the impact of the economy and high costs of all sources of energy on vulnerable households.  

The Governor’s full presentation to the delegation can be viewed here.

A complete list of priorities the Governor submitted to the Delegation is available here.

BREAKING: Four New York Times Reporters Missing In Libya

It has been reported that 4 New York Times Journalists have been missing since yesterday in Libya. They do not know if they were together or not. More to come.....

Massive Online Pedophile Ring Busted By Cops

Five Americans are among 184 people arrested so far; 230 abused children, some as young as seven, have been taken to safety

An Internet pedophile ring with up to 70,000 members — thought to be the world's largest —has been uncovered by police, a security official said Wednesday.

The European police agency Europol said in a statement that "Operation Rescue" had identified 670 suspects and that 230 abused children in 30 countries had been taken to safety. More children are expected to be found, Europol said.

It said that so far 184 people had been arrested and investigations in some countries were continuing. Most of those detained are suspected of direct involvement in sexually abusing children.

They include teachers, police officers and scout leaders, AP reported. One Spaniard who worked at summer youth camps is suspected of abusing some 100 children over five years.

Europol director Rob Wainwright said Wednesday the ring, which communicated using an Internet forum, was was "probably the largest online pedophile network in the world."

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'Slow-Moving Nightmare' Unfolds At Japan Nuclear Plant

European Union's energy chief says nuke plant is 'effectively out of control'

TOKYO — Japan's nuclear crisis appeared to be spinning out of control on Wednesday after workers withdrew briefly from a stricken power plant because of surging radiation levels and a helicopter failed to drop water on the most troubled reactor.

In a sign of desperation, crews planned to try to cool spent nuclear fuel at one of the facility's reactors with water cannons, normally used to quell riots.

Early in the day, another fire broke out at the earthquake-crippled facility, which has sent low levels of radiation wafting into Tokyo, triggering fear in the capital and international alarm.

Japan's government said radiation levels outside the plant's gates were stable but appealed to private companies to help deliver supplies to tens of thousands of people evacuated from around the complex.

"People would not be in immediate danger if they went outside with these levels. I want people to understand this," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told a televised news conference, referring to people living outside an 18-mile exclusion zone. Some 140,000 people inside the zone have been told to stay indoors.

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A Message From Chuck Campbell

Wandering the hospital hallways. YIPEEEEE. A little winded in this picture right after the patient olympics where I cleaned up in the IV pole races!

NPR On GOP’s Chopping Block On Thursday

National Public Radio will face public scrutiny again on Thursday as House Republicans are set to eliminate the publicly-funded radio network’s taxpayer subsidies. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a Virginia Republican, will bring a standalone bill that completely defunds NPR to the floor Thursday afternoon. Congressman Doug Lamborn, Colorado Republican, is cosponsoring the bill, HR 1076.

A spokeswoman for Cantor told The Daily Caller that the reasoning behind bringing this defunding bill forward when HR 1, the long-term Continuing Resolution that would fund the government through the end of this fiscal year,  is because it defunds the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. NPR receives federal funding from other agencies and government sources and she said HR 1076 would cut those off.

GOP calls for cutting the flow of tax dollars into NPR renewed last week after conservative James O’Keefe released footage showing senior NPR executives bashing conservatives, saying Jewish people “obviously” control America’s newspapers and admitting that NPR would survive without the taxpayer money.

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62% Now Favor Repeal Of Health Care Law

Support for repeal of the national health care law has reached its highest level since May of last year. The number of voters who believe the plan will increase the cost of care has tied its highest level since the law’s passage last March.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that 62% favor repeal of the health care law, including 51% who Strongly Favor it. Only 33% of voters oppose repeal, with 24% who are Strongly Opposed. 

Support for repeal is at a 10-month high, with the number that Strongly Favors repeal at its highest level to date. Overall support for repeal has ranged from a low of 50% to a high of 63% since Democrats in Congress passed it a year ago. The Republican-led House of Representatives voted earlier this year to repeal the law, but the repeal effort is stalled in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Sixty-one percent (61%) of voters believe the law will cause health care costs to go up. Just 17% expect costs to go down under the plan, while 15% expect them to remain about the same.

Overall, 54% of voters think the national health care plan will be bad for the country, a view shared by 48% to 56% since the law’s passage. Thirty-four percent (34%) say the plan will be good for the country.

Rasmussen Reports

Wicomico County Recreation & Parks Budget

The County Executive and County Council are currently preparing the FY2012 budget which will go into effect on July 1, 2011.  Considering the continued strain on financial resources, I am sure that the budget will be carefully scrutinized.

Over the past 18 months, the Department of Recreation, Parks & Tourism has lost 40% of our funding.   The services rendered by our Department cost our citizens just $11 per person while the average in other Maryland Counties is $40.  Further erosion of the tax subsidy will compromise our ability to provide the programs and services enjoyed by Wicomico County residents.

It is healthy to engage in a discussion with those who benefit from the services we provide to assure a greater understanding of what the costs are and the value received.  For this purpose, an open meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 29^th at 7:00 PM in the Midway Room of the Youth & Civic Center.

I encourage you and your neighbors to attend this important meeting.

Gary W. Mackes, Director

Wicomico Recreation, Parks & Tourism

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY TO PRESENT 2011 FEDERAL PRIORITIES TO STATE’S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION

Please note this event begins at 2:00 p.m.  A previous advisory noted a later time.

ANNAPOLIS, MD (March 16, 2011) – Governor Martin O’Malley will present Maryland’s 2011 federal legislative priorities to the state’s Congressional delegation today at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington.  Senator Barbara Mikulski, Chair of the Maryland Delegation, will offer opening remarks.  The entire meeting is open press, and is a rescheduled event from mid-February, when it was postponed due to conflicting vote schedules in Congress.

Legislative priorities presented by Governor O’Malley will include transportation, education, job creation, environmental protection, and public safety initiatives.

Lost Pet

Our family pet has been lost since Friday March 11^th. She is a Tabby, about 9 mo. Old, spayed female. She was wearing a silver collar. May not come if approached, please call anyway!  We live in the East Main St/Saratoga Street area of Salisbury.  I can be reached at 410-713-2241 or handspunyarn@yahoo.com

Hospitals Open ERs Just For Seniors

Many hospitals run emergency rooms just for children. Now a few are opening ERs specially designed for seniors, without all the confusion and clamor and with a little more comfort.

It's a fledgling trend, but expected to increase as the population rapidly grays. The question is whether they'll truly improve care.

"Older people are not just wrinkly adults. They have totally different needs," says Dr. David John, who chairs the geriatric medicine division of the American College of Emergency Physicians.

Modern ERs are best equipped to handle crises like gunshot wounds or car crashes, not the lengthy detective work it can take to unravel the multiple ailments that older people tend to show up with, John says.

Those older patients may not even have the same symptoms as younger people. They're less likely to report chest pain with a heart attack, for instance, complaining instead of vague symptoms such as dizziness or nausea. Urinary tract infections sometimes cause enough confusion to be mistaken for dementia.

And a study published in January called delirium and dementia an "invisible hazard" for many older patients because ERs don't routinely check for not-too-obvious cognitive problems — yet such patients can't accurately describe their symptoms or understand what they're supposed to do at home.

Seniors already make 17 million ER visits a year, and one in five Americans will be 65 or older by 2030.

St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center in Paterson, N.J., started a 14-bed Senior Emergency Center two years ago, and plans to open a larger one in the fall, said emergency medicine chairman Dr. Mark Rosenberg.

"It's still hustle and bustle, but it's a couple notches down from the craziness of the main emergency department," he says.

The idea behind senior ERs: Put older patients in an area that's a bit calmer for team-based care to not just treat the problem that brought them to the hospital, but to uncover underlying problems — from depression to dementia to a home full of tripping hazards that might bring them back.

Rosenberg has documented a big drop in the number of seniors who make return visits since his center began day-after-discharge calls to monitor how they're doing.

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Cantor: No More Stopgap Measures

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor believes the stopgap measure the House passed Tuesday to keep the government running three weeks after March 18 will be the last, and this year’s fiscal issues can get resolved so Congress can proceed with next year’s budget. Cantor also said everything is on the 2012 budget table, including entitlements and defense spending.

“I think very clearly we all want to get this thing resolved, and I am hopeful that this is the last stopgap measure that we’re going to pass, and we can get about the business of resolving this year’s fiscal issues, so we can go on to the work we are supposed to be about, for next year.” Cantor Wednesday said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

Host Joe Scarborough asked if there was any friction between GOP leadership and freshman members of Congress on spending cuts, or whether such reports were overblown.

“Well, Joe, if you look at the numbers, 75 percent of the freshman class supported this stopgap measure,” Cantor said. “I think that there is concern throughout the country, just as there is some concern that exists within our members in Congress, that we ought to get this done.

“We all know that this is all about job creation, and we know that these kinds of discretionary cuts and these [continuing resolutions] pale in comparison to the problem,” he said. “So … the Republican budget will reflect our commitment to tackling the real issues of entitlement reform, and I think most people want to get on to that business, because that’s really how we are going to turn this economy around, and begin to see jobs again.”

Cantor was asked what the window will be to strike a deal – if one can be reached – on entitlements and tax reform.

“That’s really a great question – where is the sweet spot,” Cantor said. “We’re going to be unveiling our budget next month. The Budget Committee under Paul Ryan is hard at work right now trying to get straight on the numbers, and really the prescription on how we are going to deal with these entitlement reforms.

“The bottom line is: We are going to protect seniors and those nearing retirement,” he continued. “But for the rest of us – 54 and younger – we believe strongly that we’ve got to come to grips with the fact that if we’re going to save these programs for the next generation, they’re going to look a lot different.

More here

Maryland Senate Passes Dream Act

dbrillhart of Columbia, Maryland, captured the excitement at a rally just after the Maryland Senate passed the Dream Act yesterday night. He says there was a crowd of about 60 people celebrating just outside the Senate gallery. He was only observing but his wife, a lead clergy member, was participating.

Source

Maryland County Drops Strip-Searches For Pro-Life Protesters

A Maryland county has agreed to change its procedures so that peaceful, pro-life protesters no longer are strip-searched and shackled to shut them up, according to a report from the Alliance Defense Fund.

The organization has been working for several years on the litigation since the incident developed in 2008.

According to the claim filed on behalf of about 18 pro-life protesters, authorities violated the U.S. Constitution when they first ordered the protesters off of county property, then later when protesters complied and moved to city property, swooped down on them in seven police cars, shackled, strip-searched and jailed them.

The agreement provides for the county and several individuals to be dismissed as defendants based on the promised change in policy. Claims against other defendants remain.

The ADF said the county "agreed to a policy change to ensure that peaceful protesters will be protected from undergoing strip searches at the county detention center."

"Pro-life advocates should certainly not be strip searched for peacefully expressing their beliefs," said Daniel Blomberg, litigation counsel for the ADF. "The county did the right thing by changing its policy so that pro-life advocates will no longer be subjected to such needless and embarrassing searches for lawfully exercising their First Amendment protected right to free speech."

On that day in August 2008, at least a dozen state, county and city police officers handcuffed 18 participants in an annual Defend Life "Face the Truth" Pro-Life Tour.

The participants started their peaceful event along a public road in Harford County. Later, however, the group relocated to public property in the town of Bel Air, where they had been several times in past tours, after being told by state troopers to leave the county for not having a county permit to engage in free speech activities. The officers then arrested them in Bel Air without explanation.

Once in custody, the young women who had been arrested – at least two of whom were teenagers – were subjected to two rounds of strip searches, according to the ADF.

Only after the strip searches and a night spent in jail were they told why they were arrested. A week after their release, the state dropped the charges of loitering, disorderly conduct and failure to obey a lawful order that had been filed.

Read more

City Attorney Investigates Mayor Voting On Deals With Husband’s Employer

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — Some controversial votes are putting the mayor of Baltimore on the defensive.

Vic Carter reports on the potential ethics violations.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake reportedly voted to approve more than $900,000 in deals with Johns Hopkins, which employees her husband. But the mayor tells WJZ’s media partner, the Baltimore Sun, she did not vote on deals directly involving her husband’s unit — Johns Hopkins Community Physicians.

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NY Cops Searching For Missing Md. College Student

WAYLAND, N.Y. (AP) -- New York State Police say they're searching for a college student from Maryland who hasn't been heard from since leaving his off-campus residence in suburban Rochester last weekend.

Troopers say George Delany's car was found Sunday afternoon abandoned in a field in the rural village of Wayland, in northern Steuben County about 40 miles south of Rochester.

Police say the 21-year-old from Frederick, Md., was last seen Saturday leaving his apartment in the town of Chili (CHYE'-lye). Police say when he left he said he would be right back. He was officially reported missing Tuesday.

Delany attends the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he's a junior political science major.

Police have searched an area around a lake near where Delany's car was found. They plan to resume the search Wednesday morning.

Source

Happy St. Patrick's Day

The New Odd Couple: Skilled Worker Shortages And High Unemployment

YouTube last week announced it expects to have its biggest hiring year in 2011, with plans to grow its staff by 30%.

The Google-owned video site has dozens of open positions in all areas, with a high number of them are in advertising sales and customer support.

Google itself announced a few weeks ago that 2011 would be its biggest hiring year ever, surpassing its 2007 hiring record with more than 6,000 new hires.

In contrast AOL, the darling of Wall Street just a decade or so ago, announced it was laying of 20 percent of its workforce or 900 people.  That followed a cut of 2,500 employees just about 4 months ago.

The contrast between Google and AOL, as well as quite a few more technology companies, is distinct. It reinforces the volatility of business models, and essentially job markets, in today’s marketplace.

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US Energy Chief: Don't Delay New Nuclear Plants

Regulators should press ahead with approving construction licenses for new nuclear power plants despite Japan's nuclear crisis, President Barack Obama's top energy official said Tuesday.

WASHINGTON — Regulators should press ahead with approving construction licenses for new nuclear power plants despite Japan's nuclear crisis, President Barack Obama's top energy official said Tuesday.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu told a House panel that "the American people should have full confidence that the United States has rigorous safety regulations in place to ensure that our nuclear power is generated safely and responsibly." But he said that the administration "is committed to learning from Japan's experience."

Chu told reporters on Capitol Hill that he thought construction license applications pending at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission could proceed.

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Family Spent $11K To Leave Japan

A Virginia family that was in a high-rise in Japan when the earthquake hit last week spent thousands of dollars to get home, but they're getting some of that money back.

“It was a terrifying experience,” Jean Edwards said. “I looked at my colleague and he looked at me and he reached out and grabbed my hand. We held hands and I looked at him. I thought we’re going to die.”

For the past 15 years, Edwards, a patent attorney, has visited Tokyo to meet with her clients. Last week, she decided to bring her son, Max. But on Friday when the massive earthquake hit, she was stuck at an office building in the middle of a meeting, and the family was separated.

“The building was swaying so much I felt like we were going to slide out the windows,” Edwards said. "It actually tilted and I thought the conference table was going to slide out with me with it.”

Once everything calmed down, Edwards scrambled to find her son, who was waiting it out back in the hotel stairway with the rest of the guests.

That was just the beginning of their travel nightmare.

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Local Gas Taxes

What are we paying in taxes for gas in Maryland, Virginia and D.C.? The American Petroleum Institute helped us with this answer:

- In every state, a federal tax is applied to gasoline purchases. This federal tax is 18.4 cents per gallon. - Then, each state adds an additional tax on top of that. - In Maryland, there is a 23.5 cents per gallon state tax bringing the total tax to about 42 cents per gallon D.C. has the same gas tax as Maryland. - In Virginia, there’s a 19.7 cents per gallon state tax and the total tax is about 38 cents per gallon. - By comparison, the national gas tax average is about 48 cents per gallon. This means we are still paying less than most of the rest of the country.

Source

Red Roost Re-Opens Tomorrow!!!!!

RED ROOST RE-OPENS ON St. Patrick's Day, Thursday March 17th at 5:30!

Medicare And Medicaid Made $70 Billion In ‘Improper Payments’ Last Year

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services—the federal health-care agency that is a key bureaucracy in implementing Obamacare—made at least $70.5 billion in “improper payments” last year.

These improper federal health-care payments amounted to more than the combined total of $68.3 billion spent by the entire Homeland Security and the State departments last year, which spent $44.5 billion and $23.8 billion respectively according to the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Medicare made at least $48 billion in improper payments in fiscal 2010 and Medicaid made $22.5 billion, according to written testimony on "Medicare and Medicaid Fraud, Waste and Abuse" presented to the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management by Kathleen King, director of health care for the Government Accountability Office.

The full amount of improper payments made by Medicare may be higher than $48 billion because the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has not yet estimated the dollar amount of improper payments made by Medicare Part D, the prescription drug-benefit program.

A key element of Obamacare provides government health-insurance to lower income people by increasing the income threshold for Medicaid eligibility and putting more people on the Medicaid rolls.

More here

House Republican Leader: CR Will Permit Funding Of Obamacare

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said on Monday that the new continuing resolution (CR) the House will consider this week to keep the federal government funded will permit the Obama administration to spend money on the implementation of Obamacare.

Last Thursday, Reps. Steve King (R.-Iowa) and Michele Bachmann (R.-Minn.) sent a letter to Cantor, House Speaker John Boehner (R.-Ohio) and Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers asking them to include language in any future CR that would prohibit the administration from spending any money to implement Obamacare. King and Bachmann vowed not to vote for any CR that permitted funding of Obamacare and called on other House members to take the same pledge.

The language that King and Bachmann are calling for would not only prohibit normal appropriations from funding Obamacare but would also prohibit the administration from carrying out $105.5 billion in spending that, according to the Congressional Research Service, was built into the Obamacare legislation in such a way that it will be automatically spent unless Congress affirmatively prohibits the administration from spending it.

At his Capitol Hill press briefing,  CNSNews.com asked Majority Leader Cantor: “Are you or are you not going to use this CR to cut off that $105.5 billion in Obamacare funding? Representatives Steve King and Michele Bachmann have said that they want you to do that, sent a letter saying please use the CR as an opportunity to cut off that funding. Are you going to do that?”

His answer here

Conyers: Obamacare Is ‘Platform’ For Creating Single-Payer System

Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, told CNSNews.com today that the health-care law that President Barack Obama signed last March is a “platform” for building a single-payer health care system in the United States.

During a newsmakers program at the National Press Club on Monday, Conyers said that after discussing the issue with Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D.-Ohio) he voted for the health-care law because he saw it as a necessary "platform" for building toward a single-payer health-care system in the United States.

CNSNews.com asked Conyers, “Do you see a single-payer health care system ultimately in the United States?”

“Of course," he said. "Universal health care--well, every industrial country on the planet already has a universal system of health care.”

More here

O’Malley Wind-Power Bill Gets Senate Blow Back

The O’Malley administration’s proposal to build off-shore wind turbines to generate electricity faced strong headwinds in the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday. Senators spent almost 2½ hours grilling administration officials about the annual cost to consumers to finance the project and the plan to force utilities to buy the power through a 25-year contract. In his testimony on the bill, the governor himself got similar blow-back from delegates at a House hearing March 3.

Continue Reading...

Gilbert Gottfried Loses Aflac Duck Gig Because He Thinks The Japan Tsunami Is Hilarious

After several years of squawking about supplemental insurance in TV commercials, loud actor Gilbert Gottfried is without his cushy job as the Aflac duck. Why, you ask? Because he decided that it was time to crack wise on Twitter about the ongoing earthquake/tsunami catastrophe in Japan.

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Rich Don't Feel Wealthy Unless They Have $7.5 Million

While anyone with $1 million in the bank is technically a millionaire, it apparently takes a lot more money than that for the merely rich to feel truly wealthy. According to a survey of the ultra-rich by Fidelity Investments, the real benchmark for being wealthy is $7.5 million.

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Blogger Must Pay $60K To University Employee Fired Because Of Post

A Minnesota jury decided a blogger must pay $60,000 in damages to a former University of Minnesota employee who was fired after the blogger's posts exposed the former employee's alleged involvement in a mortgage fraud.

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Japan Sparks Discussions Of Earthquakes, Climate Change

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

Climate change writers are using the tragedy in Japan as an example of future climate change effects, asking if we're prepared.

Pentagon Feeling It At The Pumps Too

You're not the only one feeling pain at the pump. The Pentagon is facing more than a Billion dollar deficit in its fuel accounts -- even if oil prices remain steady! DoD Comptroller and Chief Financial Officer Robert Hale tells This Week in Defense News that the cost of fuel for the military is a serious problem. Federal Times reports the Pentagon spends about $16 Billion a year on fuel. If prices stay where they are now, officials expect to add another $1 Billion to $1.5 Billion to that price tag.

30,000 Moving To Harford County

About 30,000 people are moving into Harford County, Maryland between now and 2015. The reason: the Base Realignment and Closing Commission recommendations include sending workers to the Aberdeen Proving Ground. The Baltimore Business Journal reports Harford County has established a panel to help businesses get loans so they can build new homes, stores and other facilities to accommodate thousands of new residents. The panel's report includes 14 recommendations, including creating a program to guarantee loans for BRAC-related projects and making wider use of existing Small Business Loan programs.

Japaneese Workers Forced Out Of Plant

Japanese workers were forced to evacuate a stricken nuclear power plant after radiation levels surged this morning. Workers at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex abandoned the plant temporarily, but are now back at work trying to cool the crippled reactors and prevent a complete meltdown. The nuclear crisis comes after Friday's 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami, that destroyed Japan's northeastern coastline. The U.S. military, and U.S. disaster response teams led by US AID, are on the ground helping with search and rescue, logistics and providing food and supplies. Two NRC nuclear experts are also helping the Japanese. Tens of thousands of people are still missing as rescuers work against freezing temperatures.

House Passes Spending Bill

The House passed yet another stop-gap spending bill yesterday. This one funds the government for three-weeks and includes $6 billion in cuts. This is the 6th Continuing Resolution to pass this year. The vote was closer than previous ones, passing 271 to 158. The Senate is expected to pass the bill and the President is expected to sign it by Friday, which is when the existing CR expires. It will fund the government through April 8th.

Scott Walker Is Not The First To Strip Workers Of Their Rights

Will General Electric Get Whacked For The Catastrophic Failure Of Its Nuke Plants In Fukushima?

GE, the company that boasts that it “brings good things to life,” was the designer of the nuclear plants that are blowing up like hot popcorn kernels at the Fukushima Dai-ichi generating plant north of Tokyo that was hit by the double-whammy of an 9.1 earthquake and a huge tsunami.

The company may escape tens or hundreds of billions of dollars in liability from this continuing disaster, which could still result in a catastrophic total meltdown of one or more of the reactors (as of this writing three of the reactors are reported to have suffered explosions and partial meltdowns, and all could potentially become more serious total meltdowns with a rupture of the reactor container), thanks to Japanese law, which makes the operator--in this case Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) liable. But if it were found that it was design flaws by GE that caused the problem, presumably TEPCO or the Japanese government could pursue GE for damages.

In fact, the design of these facilities--a design which, it should be noted, was also used in 23 nuclear plants operating in the US in Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Vermont--appear to have included serious flaws, from a safety perspective.

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Before And After Photos Of Japan

Just move your mouse back and forth across each photo … it makes the destruction really obvious!

 

 

 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/events/japan-quake-2011/beforeafter.htm

BREAKING NEWS:

Wholesale prices rise 1.6% due to biggest jump in food costs in over 36 years.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected producer prices to rise 0.7 percent last month. In the 12 months to February, producer prices increased 5.6 percent, the biggest rise since March, after advancing 3.6 percent in January.

The report came a day after the Federal Reserve said it expected the upward inflation pressure from energy and other commodities to prove transitory but that it would keep a close eye on inflation and inflation expectations.

The increase in wholesale prices last month was broad-based, with energy prices surging 3.3 percent — the biggest increase since January 2010, after 1.8 percent the prior month.

Gasoline prices, which rose 3.7 percent, accounted for over 40 percent of the increase in the energy index. Food prices jumped 3.9 percent, the biggest increase since 1974.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected producer prices to rise 0.7 percent last month. In the 12 months to February, producer prices increased 5.6 percent, the biggest rise since March, after advancing 3.6 percent in January.

The report came a day after the Federal Reserve said it expected the upward inflation pressure from energy and other commodities to prove transitory but that it would keep a close eye on inflation and inflation expectations.

The increase in wholesale prices last month was broad-based, with energy prices surging 3.3 percent — the biggest increase since January 2010, after 1.8 percent the prior month.

Gasoline prices, which rose 3.7 percent, accounted for over 40 percent of the increase in the energy index. Food prices jumped 3.9 percent, the biggest increase since 1974.

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Amid Furor Over State Pensions, Congress Gets Much Bigger Ones

Some members of Congress haven't been shy about criticizing underfunded state and local pension plans, even though they themselves enjoy much heftier retirement packages than most private-sector employees and state workers do.

Budget battles in New Jersey, Illinois, Wisconsin and Ohio have captured headlines of late as lawmakers struggle over how to pay retirement benefits for state and local government workers. Some Washington lawmakers have added fuel to the flaming national debate.

In a recent speech to South Carolina Republicans, for example, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., said "we've got to get real about what we can and cannot afford" in state pensions.

From the other pole of debate, Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown linked opponents of public sector unions to Nazi Germany.

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The Daily Times Gets Tax Breaks They Don't Deserve

"Hi Joe, the times got the enterprise zone tax break for the building that houses the printing press, they do not use"

Even though the Daily Times has laid off close to 80% of their former Staff, even though they're not using the printing press and keeping jobs in Salisbury, even though they don't even own the building they're located in, your City Council and Mayor find it necessary to subsidize a dying business.

Look, it's as simple as this, NO! Try it mayor and Council. Oh, that's right, Ireton is a democrat and a Teacher, they don't understand the word NO.

Only in Salisbury and Wicomico County do we REWARD businesses that drop by 80% and know  they're going to fail. Those tax reliefs are supposed to be for businesses expanding and growing, building the local economic and development.

A Letter To The Editor

Can anyone explain to me why WBOC has a mid-shore reporter who travels up to Chestertown concerning the city council voting this coming Monday about banning plastic bags?  The reason I ask is due to living in the area where WBOC opened up their studio yet they only seem to cover the two big businesses in Salisbury (PRMC and SU) and now anything north and northwest of Salisbury.  When OC opens up they will make a big show up being there during the summer.  What about the other places and things going on that used to be covered?  Are people in Chestertown watching WBOC or WJZ in Baltimore?  I noticed on snow days WJZ broadcast Kent County schools being closed yet WBOC didn't.

Police Arrest 2 Men In Shooting Of Delaware Cab Driver

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- Wilmington police say two men have been arrested in connection with the shooting of a cab driver earlier this month.

Police say Cristofer Jackson of Ellendale and Deronta Persons of Milford have been charged with attempted murder, robbery, conspiracy and weapons offenses.

Authorities say the cab driver responded to a call for a ride in Bear on March 5. Two men asked to be taken to Wilmington. Police say at A and South Walnut streets, the men robbed and shot the driver. They say an unknown person drove the men from the city, and are asking the public for help in finding that person.

The driver remained in critical condition at Christiana Hospital on Tuesday.

Source

Iowa Considers Criminalizing Undercover Videos Of Farm Animal Abuse

According to Democracy Now!, Iowa lawmakers are considering a bill that would prohibit animal rights activists from recording undercover videos of farm animals being abused. The bill, which has garnered support from the state's agricultural industry, would impose fines and jail time on anyone who seeks employment in an agricultural position in order to capture the footage. Undercover videos in recent years have led to numerous plant closures and meat recalls after revelations of mistreatment of cows, pigs, and other farm animals.

Source

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Won't Run For Re-Election

RAMALLAH, West Bank -- The Palestinian president says he won't run for re-election. This is the first time Mahmoud Abbas has said explicitly he won't seek another term.

In a speech Wednesday to political allies, Abbas also said he is willing to travel to the Gaza Strip to promote reconciliation between the feuding Palestinian territories and form a united government.

Abbas' plan includes new elections within six months. But he says he wouldn't run for president again.

However, it's not clear that elections will be held because Abbas says they cannot take place if the West Bank and Gaza don't reunite.

Source

How The Tiny Kingdom Of Bahrain Strong-Armed the President Of The United States

The men walking down the street looked ordinary enough.  Ordinary, at least, for these days of tumult and protest in the Middle East.  They wore sneakers and jeans and long-sleeved T-shirts.  Some waved the national flag.  Many held their hands up high.  Some flashed peace signs.  A number were chanting, “Peaceful, peaceful.”

Up ahead, video footage shows, armored personnel carriers sat in the street waiting.  In a deadly raid the previous day, security forces had cleared pro-democracy protesters from the Pearl Roundabout in Bahrain’s capital, Manama.  This evening, the men were headed back to make their voices heard.

The unmistakable crack-crack-crack of gunfire then erupted, and most of the men scattered.  Most, but not all.  Video footage shows three who never made it off the blacktop.  One in an aqua shirt and dark track pants was unmistakably shot in the head.  In the time it takes for the camera to pan from his body to the armored vehicles and back, he’s visibly lost a large amount of blood. 

Human Rights Watch would later report that Redha Bu Hameed died of a gunshot wound to the head.

That incident, which occurred on February 18th, was one of a series of violent actions by Bahrain’s security forces that left seven dead and more than 200 injured last month.  Reports noted that peaceful protesters had been hit not only by rubber bullets and shotgun pellets, but -- as in the case of Bu Hameed -- by live rounds.

The bullet that took Bu Hameed’s life may have been paid for by U.S. taxpayers and given to the Bahrain Defense Force by the U.S. military.  The relationship represented by that bullet (or so many others like it) between Bahrain, a tiny country of mostly Shia Muslim citizens ruled by a Sunni king, and the Pentagon has recently proven more powerful than American democratic ideals, more powerful even than the president of the United States.

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Class Warfare, The Final Chapter

"There's class warfare, all right, but it's my class, the rich class, that's making war, and we're winning." -Warren Buffett to The New York Times, November 26, 2006

There is overwhelming evidence that we are entering the final chapter of class warfare in the US. Today, in the "public arena," it is forbidden to say class warfare, and many citizens do not regard themselves as working class. The assault on language comes compliments of the propaganda apparatus, which includes: public relations, marketing, corporate media and the entertainment industry, universities, think tanks and so on. Its purpose is to distract our attention from serious matters so we can focus on trivial matters - usually involving consuming. Edward Bernays, the founder of the modern propaganda industry, described the process:

Those who manipulate the unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government. We are governed, our minds molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested largely by men we have never heard of ... in almost every act of our lives whether in the sphere of politics or business, in our social conduct or our ethical thinking we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires that control the public mind

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Teen Sentenced To 60 Years In Home Invasion Death

ELKTON, Md. (AP) -- A man who was 16 during a home invasion during which a woman was killed has been sentenced to 60 years in prison.

Eighteen-year-old Seth Jedlicka of Middletown, Del. was sentenced Monday for first-degree murder in the shooting death of 40-year-old Terri Ann McCoy in her parents' home near Chesapeake City in 2009.

Jedlicka is one of four people charged in the death of McCoy, who was shot five times when they broke into her parents' home. The robbers escaped with more than $500,000 in jewelry.

Jedlick's lawyer had recommended a 15-year sentence, saying that Jedlicka didn't pull the trigger.

Information from: Cecil Whig of Elkton, Md., http://www.cecilwhig.com/

BREAKING NEWS: Pakistani Court Reportedly Frees Jailed CIA Contractor

LAHORE, Pakistan -- Jail official says CIA contractor has been freed from a Pakistani prison after murder case dropped.

Source

Delegate Threatens To Sue If Immigrant Tuition Bill Passed

House Begins Hearing Bill That Senate Passed Monday

BALTIMORE -- A Republican lawmaker is threatening to sue the state if his colleagues pass legislation providing a college tuition break to undocumented students.

The lawsuit will be filed if the measure makes it out of a House committee and if the full House passes it before the end of the session.

The full Senate voted Monday night to pass the bill.

Delegate Patrick McDonough, R-Baltimore County, vowed arguments against the measure would be heard in court if his House colleagues send it Gov. Martin O'Malley. The governor said he would sign it if passed.

"When I say I'm going to file a lawsuit, I mean it," McDonough said.

He sued Montgomery College over its policy of giving undocumented students a tuition break. The case will be heard next month.

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Federal Report Upgrades Farmers' Bay Cleanup Efforts

Study still finds most croplands need more pollution controls

A federal study assessing how much farmers are doing to clean up the Chesapeake Bay credits them with making progress in reducing their pollution but says the vast majority need to do more to help the troubled estuary.

Conservation practices adopted by farmers in Maryland and the other five states draining into the bay have cut erosion by more than half and curtailed runoff of fertilizer by 40 percent, according to the study released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

But 80 percent of the 4.6 million acres used to raise crops need additional measures, the report says, to keep fertilizer from washing off fields into nearby streams when it rains or soaking into ground water and ultimately reaching the bay.

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House To Restore Education Money

House plans higher fees; deeper cuts elsewhere

House leaders want to reverse the bulk of the budget cuts to education proposed by Gov. Martin O'Malley, a move that would restore funding for strapped school systems in the Baltimore area and around the state after an angry backlash from teachers, students and parents.

The plan would shift $58.5 million back to schools by raising some fees and trimming elsewhere in the $14 billion general fund budget. Members of the House Appropriations Committee are scheduled to start voting Wednesday in Annapolis on those changes, which would restore two-thirds of the money that O'Malley proposed to cut.

"Investment in education is good public policy. It is good economic policy," said House Speaker Michael E. Busch. "It puts people on the path to success."

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Two Bulldogs Euthanized After Attacking Girl, 7, In Dundalk

Two dogs that attacked a 7-year-old girl in Dundalk over the weekend have been euthanized, according to a Baltimore County Department of Health spokeswoman.

The American bulldogs were put down Monday at the request of their owner, said the spokeswoman, Monique Lyle.

The girl had been riding her bike in the 700 block of Villager Circle when the dogs escaped their yard and attacked her, said Lt. Robert McCullough, a Baltimore County police spokesman.

The girl remains in serious condition and will need several surgeries to recover from her injuries, he said.

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Sit Back And Enjoy...Old Hot Rods

turn  up your speakers     Someone  did an awesome job putting this together 
and  with sound to boot. At the very end of the video 
you'll  hear the song ' Thunder Road ' sung  by the star
of  the movie for which it was the theme!   
Not  uncommon except this is the one and only song 
ever  recorded, for publication, sung by Robert Mitchum!  Cars  we drove in the 50's and 60's

click on line below 
http://cruzintheavenue.com/CarsWeDrove.htm

MD Dems Cant Keep Story Straight On Tax Hikes

In Case You Missed It:

MD Dems can’t keep story straight on tax hikes

________________________________________________________________________

 

View this article on MDGOP.org

Follow MDGOP on Twitter

 

In Case You Missed It:

Miller Says Lawmakers Working On Alcohol Tax

 

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller says lawmakers are working on how to impose an increase in Maryland’s alcohol tax….Miller told reporters Tuesday he believes an increase will be approved, but it won’t be nearly as large as supporters initially wanted. (Associated Press, “Miller Says Lawmakers Working On Alcohol Tax,” CBS Baltimore, 3/15/11)

 

In Case You Forgot:

Miller says increase to alcohol tax is 'nonsense'
 

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller this morning had sobering words for those advocating a hike on beer, wine and liquor taxes: The proposal is "nonsense," he said.  "It is not going to happen," said Miller. (Annie Linksey, “Miller says increase to alcohol tax is ‘nonsense’,” Baltimore Sun, 1/12/11)

 

 

Miller Hopes You Forgot:

Legislative leaders say no new taxes next year, as O’Malley is now pledging

 

Senate President Mike Miller and House Speaker Michael Busch both said Thursday they expect no new taxes next year – as newly reelected Gov. Martin O’Malley has now promised two days in a row. “People are relatively happy in Maryland,” Miller said,…But “they’re not looking for any tax increases; they’re looking for less government.” (Len Lazarick, “Legislative leaders say no new taxes next year, as O’Malley is now pledging,” Maryland Reporter, 11/5/10)

Not Natural Born -- TRUTH MATTERS

Two Stories BOTH TRUE

STORY NUMBER ONEMany years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago . Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.

Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time..

To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie got special dividends, as well. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block.

Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little consideration to the atrocity that went on around him.

Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object.

And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was.

Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.

One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done.

He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al "Scarface" Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he testified.

Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street . But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine.

The poem read:

"The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will. Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still."

STORY NUMBER TWOWorld War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare.

He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific.

One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel Gage and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank.

He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship.

His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet.

As he was returning to the mother ship, he saw something that turned his blood cold; a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American fleet.

The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet.

Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes. Wing-mounted 50 caliber's blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another. Butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent.

Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible, rendering them unfit to fly.

Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction.

Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier.

Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft
This took place on February 20, 1942 , and for that action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Medal of Honor.

A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29.. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man.

So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare International, give some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1 and 2.


SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?


Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son.

'Slow-Moving Nightmare' Unfolds At Japan Nuclear Plant

This picture, released from Tokyo Electric Power Co. on Wednesday, shows damaged No.3 and No. 4 reactors at the Dai-ichi nuclear plant in Fukushima.

Expert says those working to prevent full-scale nuclear disaster 'may be throwing in the towel'

TOKYO — Workers were ordered to withdraw briefly from a stricken Japanese nuclear power plant on Wednesday after radiation levels surged, a development that suggested the crisis was spiraling out of control.

Just hours earlier another fire broke out at the earthquake-crippled facility, which has sent low levels of radiation wafting into Tokyo in the past 24 hours, triggering fear in the capital and international alarm.

Workers were trying to build a road so fire trucks could reach reactor No. 4 at the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex, 150 miles north of Tokyo.

Flames were no longer visible at the building housing the reactor, but TV pictures showed rising smoke or steam.

A helicopter was also preparing to pour water on to No. 3 reactor — whose roof was damaged by an earlier explosion — to try to cool its fuel rods, broadcaster NHK said.

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