Salisbury News: 08/09/11

Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Critics Question U.S. Aid To China Amid Debt Woes

With America still drowning in debt, critics in and outside of Congress say it’s time to reassess U.S. foreign aid -- especially to China.

"We started looking at the contracts and it was rather amazing that the No. 1 recipient of these taxpayer dollars were Chinese-state owned corporations," said Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, referring to $320 million dollars worth of U.S. government contracts let to China. "I think we can take a good hard look where we're giving foreign aid."

When we witness a terrible accident, hear bad news or are in disbelief, putting our hands over our mouths is physically expressing that we can’t emotionally take anything else in.

We've seen the facepalm in the now all-too-familiar images of woeful stock brokers, hands on their faces as they receive news of the plummeting stock market. (There's even a Tumblr, The Brokers With Hands on Their Faces Blog, devoted to cataloging images of, well, brokers with hands on their faces.) We witnessed it when Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton covered her mouth as she watched Navy Seals execute Osama bin Laden (although she blamed it on allergies) -- and we even see this gesture when beauty pageant contestants are crowned.

When humans are scared or shocked, we tend to put our hands over our mouths, hold our foreheads or place our hands over our cheeks. But why?

“It’s called the pacifier gesture,” says Janine Driver, president of the Body Language Institute in Washington, D.C. “It’s like a kid sucking his thumb. When our hands go up and touch our faces, it’s saying to ourselves ‘It’s OK, it’s safe.’ It’s like our mother giving us hug. It says we’ll get through this.”

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Was S&P Downgrade An Act Of Revenge?

You might think Standard & Poor’s has something against the U.S. government, the way the ratings firm treated the nation's credit rating on Friday.

In fact, it does.

It's hard to view the monumental ratings downgrade in context without understanding the long-running feud between the government and ratings agencies. In April, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., issued a scathing 650-page report contending that malfeasance at ratings bureaus like Standard & Poor’s was as much to blame for the housing bubble as any bank, and included a series of smoking gun e-mails that suggested that the firms knew they were profiting from unethical behavior. A little-known section of the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill also hits the rating agencies with new limits destined to undercut their lucrative business; the Securities and Exchange Commission is discussing right now just how to implement the new rules. The public comment period on new rules ended Monday.

Is the timing a coincidence? Or could the ratings downgrade from Standard & Poor’s be viewed as a shot back at a government that's been taking plenty of shots at the ratings industry lately?

To be sure, no one needs Standard & Poor’s to say the U.S. government's coffers are in sorry shape. But this feud over the lucrative and arcane business of granting credit ratings shouldn’t be ignored.

More Than 1,000 Acres Burned In Blaze

Great Dismal Swamp National Wildfire Refuge
is sending smoke all the way to Ocean City.

WBAL Production Manager David Butta, in Ocean City, said he could see and smell the smoke. He sent the photo that's attached.

Test could aid in detection of genetic diseases, but some fear it will be used for gender selection

NEW YORK — Blood drawn from expectant mothers could offer parents an earlier sneak peek at their baby’s sex than methods currently used in the U.S., researchers said Tuesday.

The test may be particularly valuable for families that harbor sex-linked genetic disorders like hemophilia, they add.

Because such disorders only strike boys, knowing that the baby is a girl could spare the mother diagnostic procedures, such as amniocentesis, that carry a small risk of miscarriage.

Police had no sympathy for a father driving his family to hospital to avert tragedy

A man in Manitoba, Canada has been given a whopping $1,000 ticket and a suspended driver's license as punishment for speeding to the hospital in order to save the life of his pregnant wife and his unborn child, reported the Winnipeg Free Press.

David Weber and his wife Genevieve one day last March were on their way home from a day of shopping when she began to have contractions. Genevieve was 38 weeks pregnant and the couple knew, because of complications she incurred while giving birth to their first child, they had very little time to get her to the hospital for a Caesarean section.

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Help Wanted!

Do you have a dog, would you like to work with dogs? Cathy’s Pet Salon, Spa and Doggie Daycare is looking for a Doggie Daycare Nanny. Duties include, lots of ball playing, running, getting wet in the wading pool, and making snowballs. Also lots of cleaning and bathing dogs. Computer skills also needed.

Please apply at:

1005 Mt. Hermon Road Salisbury, MD.

Tues – Thurs, 8 am – 6 pm.

Can a Car Be Teen-Proof?

Some drive 100 miles per hour, take corners way too fast and brake aggressively.

No, we’re not talking about NASCAR drivers. Many teen drivers are too young and optimistic to think about petty annoyances like speed limit signs. Others tweet and text their friends while driving.

Despite stern lectures from parents, the problem is not going away. A new study by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) found that almost 3 out of 4 teen drivers, or 68%, had narrowly avoided an accident in the past year. According to the Department of Transportation, three people die per day because they are texting while driving.

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For-Profit College Corporation Accused Of Violating Federal Law By States, Justice Department

The U.S. Justice Department and four states sued the nation’s second-largest for-profit college corporation on Monday, alleging in a wide-ranging complaint that Education Management Corp. violated federal laws by giving bonuses and raises to college recruiters based entirely on the number of students they enrolled.

By unlawfully incentivizing its sales force to recruit as many students as possible, Pittsburgh-based EDMC also illegally took in federal student aid money by making false assurances to the government that its admissions counselors were complying with the government recruiting guidelines, the government alleged.

29,000 Somali Children Under 5 Dead In Famine: U.S. Official

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Kaltum Mohamed sits beside a small mound of earth, alone with her thoughts. It is her child's grave – and there are three others like it.

Just three weeks ago, Mohamed was the mother of five young children. But the famine that has rocked Somalia has claimed the lives of four of them. Only a daughter remains. The others starved to death before Mohamed's eyes as she and her husband trekked to Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, in search of aid.

Rosie comforts witnesses as the first judicially approved courtroom canine in New York

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — Rosie, the first judicially approved courtroom dog in New York, was in the witness box here nuzzling a 15-year-old girl who was testifying that her father had raped and impregnated her. Rosie sat by the teenager's feet. At particularly bad moments, she leaned in.

When the trial ended in June with the father's conviction, the teenager "was most grateful to Rosie above all," said David A. Crenshaw, a psychologist who works with the teenager. "She just kept hugging Rosie."

A Readers Concerns About Marilyn Buck

Dear Joe,

Please consider this worrisome post
.

People supporting the release of this criminal Marilyn Buck, link back to Ogletree, a law Professor at Harvard who Obama has appointed to Justice Dept. Ogletree is a mentor to Obama's daughter!!!!!! The tentacles run deep and deadly.

J. Christian Adams who reported the release of Buck via Eric Holder also exposed the outrageous release of Philadelhia New Black Panthers that were not prosecuted by Holder for civil rights violations- voter intimidation in Phillie in 2008 Presidential election.

http://godfatherpolitics.com/400/attorney-general-releases-murdering-terrorists-upon-request/

Don't Forget To Visit The Melson Power Show This Weekend!

Global Grand Policy Failure: Liquidity Traps And Financial Black Holes

"We are all Keynesians now," indeed. Keynesian policies have pushed the global economy into a financial black hole.

What we are experiencing is Grand Policy Failure on a global scale, a failure best understood by examining liquidity traps and the Keynesian plummet into Financial Black Holes.

What is a liquidity trap? Here's Wikipedia's definition [3]:

The liquidity trap, in Keynesian economics, is a situation where monetary policy is unable to stimulate an economy, either through lowering interest rates or increasing the money supply. Liquidity traps typically occur when expectations of adverse events make persons with liquid assets unwilling to invest.

Here's what that means in the real world. I have $100 in liquid assets, i.e. cash, I saved from my income. I could leverage that by borrowing $1,000 at low interest and devoting the $100 to service that new debt ( i.e. make a future monthly payment), but since my future income is in doubt, I have no desire to take on more debt, even at zero interest. How do I know if my income will enable me to pay back the principal?

I could spend the $100 on discretionary purchases, but since I have everything I need to get by and my future income is doubtful, I prefer the security of savings over the marginal return of owning more gewgaws.

I could use it to hire an assistant (presuming I'm self-employed or in business), but since revenues have been unpredictable, I'd rather work a few extra hours myself and keep the $100.

I could spend the $100 on some new software that might make me more productive, but why bother when business is at best flatlined and at worst, in a freefall?

That's a liquidity trap: those with cash and the ability to borrow have no desire to either spend or invest in new employees or business assets. Their cash (liquidity) is "trapped" in the sense they have no desire or need to spend it or invest it.

In standard Keynesian economics, the only thing holding back a tide of spending and investing is lack of faith in future growth.

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THE BEST LOOKING HORSE IN THE GLUE FACTORY

As usual the MSM did its usual superficial dog and pony show for the American public on Saturday and Sunday. The overall tone on every show (not journalism) was to calm the audience. Every station had a ”downgrade special” to explain why you shouldn’t panic over the downgrade of the United States. As we can see, it didn’t work. Worldwide markets went berserk. The reactions of the various players in this saga have been very enlightening to say the least.

As I watched, listened and read the views of hundreds of people over the last few days, I recalled a statement by David Walker in the documentary I.O.U.S.A. This documentary was made in late 2007 before the financial crisis hit. The documentary follows Walker, the former head of the GAO, and Bob Bixby, head of the Concord Coalition, on their Fiscal Wake Up tour.

In the film, Walker tells the audience: “We suffer from a fiscal cancer. If we don’t treat it there will be catastrophic consequences.” He argued the greatest threat to America was not a terrorist squatting in a cave in Afghanistan, but the US debt mountain. He was nervous about the increasing dependence on countries such as China, which are the biggest holders of US Treasury bonds. Bixby explained: “If you knew a levee was unsound and people were moving into that area, would you do nothing? Of course not.” These men were sounding the alarm when our National Debt was $9 trillion. Evidently, no one in Washington DC went to see the movie. They’ve added $5.5 trillion of debt to our Mount Everest of obligations.

After listening to the shills, shysters, propagandists, and paid representatives of the vested interests over the last few days, Mr. Walker’s response to someone pointing out Europe and other countries were in worse shape than the U.S. came to mind:

“What good does it do to be the best-looking horse in the glue factory?”

The Endgame Of TBTF Banks And Rising Rates

Global markets are stabilizing a bit after authorities worldwide are pulling out all the stops to stem the bloody tide. Greece and South Korea have followed Italy’s recent lead and even banned the short-selling of equities. Brazilian Finance Minister Mantega said the G-20 was prepared to take action to calm the global crisis. The concerns over the debt levels of Italy, a country which is Too-Big-To-Bailout, are quickly spreading to the US as Citigroup and Bank of America both fell over 15% yesterday. Personally, I don’t think it’s necessary to bifurcate these two problems much, both the Italian crisis and the TBTF bank sell offs in the US represent the same thing, potential threats to the banks that make up the $700tr derivative market. The $60tr global economy can take a haircut on billions of dollars in Greek debt, but it simply cannot take a haircut on $700tr in global derivatives sitting on the balance sheet of every major government, hedge fund, financial services company, TBTF bank, insurance company and major corporation that engages in any hedging activity. Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Ireland could all simply restructure their debt and life would go on were it not for the leverage of the banks that hold them. In the US, real estate could be allowed to fall to its market clearing price or be written off by the lender were it not for the leverage of the banks that own it. No matter which way you turn, all roads lead to the TBTF banks, their leverage and the $700tr derivatives market. Until these issues are resolved, we will continue to go through bouts of panic, instability and market routs. The entire global economic system is threatened by the continued status quo regarding our TBTF banks and the global derivatives market. Everything else is just noise. Governments can be upgraded or downgraded, currencies can rise and fall and equity markets can rally or sell-off. But if one of the TBTF banks collapses, the game will change immediately to one of fear and collapse as the size of the potential asset write-downs that will follow is simply overwhelming.

What about QE3?

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Super Congress A Gift To K Street

The Super Congress created by the recent debt ceiling increase deal is a typical example of something nefarious attached to a bigger bill that is rushed through Congress without giving Members ample opportunity to consider the full ramifications. This commission may turn into an early Christmas present for the well-heeled lobbyists of K Street. This is because the commission presents a huge opportunity for lobbying firms to sneak their clients' pet projects and issues into whatever legislation is created by the commission. The fact that automatic cuts to defense are named if the committee deadlocks simply signals to the military-industrial complex to bring their A game to the lobbying effort.

One red flag I am constantly aware of in my position as a Congressman is that highly complex and convoluted legislation frequently has dangerous provisions hidden in the fine print. Elaborate legislative packages force lawmakers to take the bad with the good, and often if they refuse they are accused of voting against the positive provision – never mind the blatant Constitutional violations in the bill, the spending, the waste, and the unchecked expansion of government. I don't usually have to read too much of a bill like that before encountering something unconstitutional, or simply unwise. Then I have to vote no.

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Ohio Woman Falls Into Recycling Bin, Dies Inside

TOLEDO, Ohio — A woman who died after falling face-first into a recycling bin and wasn't noticed until her husband came from work had gotten stuck in a position in which she couldn't breathe, a coroner said.

Sheila Decoster, 62, was likely inside the bin for several hours before she was found Friday, said Lucas County Deputy Coroner Diane Barnett. The woman's husband saw her legs sticking out of the 64-gallon container that sits alongside their porch.

"I just happened to look to the left and, honestly, thought it was a dummy," Richard Decoster told The Blade newspaper of Toledo (http://bit.ly/oucrqD). "I shook her leg and called her name, and I knew she was gone."

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Manassas Cat Shot With Crossbow

Police in Manassas Park in Prince William County, Virginia are looking for the person who shot a cat with an arrow.

Investigators say it happened on Martin Drive on August 1 between the hours of 1 p.m. and 4:25 p.m.

Police say a man came home from work and found his family pet with the arrow through the cat's neck. The weapon apparently came from a crossbow.

A veterinarian got the arrow out and the cat is now recovering.

Police questioned neighbors about the incident and kept the arrow as evidence.

Source

Giardia: Protecting Your Pet And You

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WUSA) -- Hokie is fine now, but she was one sick pup back in March.

"She wasn't eating well," says Hokie's owner, Alyssa Westenberger. "She was vomiting all night. And her stool started to change a lot."

All of Hokie's symptoms were because of a parasite called Giardia. One of the most common parasites out there, Giardia is a single-celled organism that lives in an infected pet's intestine. Infection caused by Giardia is known as Giardiasis.

Cats and dogs can have Giardiasis.

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Dad Behind 'Psycho Ex Wife' Blog Protests Its Shutdown

A dad whose very personal blog called The Psycho Ex Wife was ordered shut down by a family court judge is challenging that ruling, saying it violates his First Amendment rights.

In late 2007, Anthony Morelli started the blog, describing it as "the true account of a marriage, divorce, and subsequent (child) custody fight between a loving man, his terroristic ex-wife who we suspect suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder (at least from our armchair psychologist diagnosis), and the husband's new partner."

BREAKING NEWS: Disney’s 3Q Results Top Views

After the bell Tuesday, Disney posted third-quarter EPS and revenue that beat expectations. The Dow component earned 78 cents a share on an adjusted basis, versus Wall Street’s view of 73 cents, and revenue came in at $10.68 billion versus expectations of $10.46 billion. The shares rose by 5% in the regular session and are trading slightly higher in after-hours action.
From Fox News

BREAKING NEWS: Stocks Soar After Fed Says Rates To Stay Low

Just a day after suffering through one of the worst days in recent memory, major stock-market averages rocketed higher. The gains were helped in part by the Federal Reserve saying it expects interest rates will stay exceptionally low for at least two more years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average got back a huge portion of Monday’s 634-point selloff, gaining 429 points and closing at session highs. The Nasdaq Composite index surged 5.3% and the S&P 500 rallied 4.7%. Treasury yields plummeted further and the price of oil dropped.From Fox News

O'Malley, Archbishop At Odds Over Same-Sex Marriage, Letters Show

Two days before Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) announced plans to sponsor a same-sex marriage bill, a Catholic archbishop strongly urged that he reconsider the move, suggesting the governor was acting out of "mere political expediency."

A Maryland woman vacationing in Aruba has disappeared from the same resort town where Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway was last seen six years ago.

Robyn Gardner, 35, of Frederick, Md., disappeared Aug. 2 from the Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino in Oranjestad, MyFoxDC.com reports.

O'Brien Urged O'Malley Against Backing Gay Marriage

In the days before Gov. Martin O'Malley announced his support for same-sex marriage, Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien privately urged him against "promoting a goal that so deeply conflicts with your faith."

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How Do Credit Rating Agencies, Like Standard And Poors, Work?

We've been hearing a lot about rating agencies, and Standard and Poors in particular. You might have the general idea that the ratings they give bonds are a lot like your credit score. The lower the bond rating, the lower the credit score, the harder and more expensive it is to borrow money. But how exactly do these places work? And how might their judgment be corrupted? Marketplace's Paddy Hirsch explains in this video using his trusty whiteboard and dry-erase maker.

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Time For Term Limits For Dorchester County Council

A citizens' group will begin a campaign to place a question on the 2012 general election ballot that would establish term limits on members of the Dorchester County Council limiting council members to two four-year terms. There are many of us who are not satisfied with the direction our county has been moving over the last several decades.

I personally have heard comments of people wanting to run for office, but said they didn't think they had a chance because Dorchester County elections are a popularity contest and it is difficult to run against the entrenched politicians. Like many elections, people tend to vote for a name they recognize, not for the most qualified candidate. History shows that many replacements on the council are due to death or retirement of a council person.

About an hour ago, an airplane buzzed the S&P's office in New York City towing a banner that said, "Thanks For The Downgrade. You Should All Be Fired."

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BREAKING NEWS: Stocks Surge At Close

Dow closes up more than 400 points as stocks recoup some of their recent losses.
From Fox News

Mass Of Orange Bubbly Goo In Alaska Not Yet Identified

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists have identified a wave of orange, bubbly goo that engulfed the shoreline of Kivalina, Alaska recently. The scientists discovered the goo was made of microscopic eggs filled with fatty droplets. But the feds aren't sure what species the eggs come from or whether they are poisonous. The mess has dissipated, but samples are being sent to a NOAA facility in Charleston, S.C. for further analysis.

Freddie Mac Wants $1.5 Billion From Taxpayers

Apparently oblivious to the fact that the government is experiencing some financial problems, Freddie Mac says it needs to ask taxpayers for $1.5 billion to help it cover the net worth deficit it's plunged into thanks to the housing market bust.

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No Public Media Coverage In Dover Today

The remains of the 30 U.S. troops killed when a Chinook helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan will arrive at Dover Air Force Base today, the Associated Press reports. But Pentagon officials said there won't be public media coverage of the military's "dignified transfer" ceremony because the remains are still being identified. Families are allowed to attend the arrival. NATO said the Chinook helicopter carrying the troops was shot down by an insurgent armed with a rocket-propelled grenade.

Worcester Not Considering Charging Athletes

BERLIN -- Despite a growing trend toward “pay-to-play” policies for sports and other extracurricular activities in the face of shrinking budgets and other cutbacks, Worcester County public schools officials will not be collecting fees from student athletes any time in the near future.

Public school systems across Maryland and throughout the country are adopting stringent fee schedules for students to participate in sports and even music, fine arts and drama in many cases. Just last week, Queen Anne’s County joined the ranks of school systems in Maryland that will start charging students fees to play sports or participate in other extracurricular activities and neighboring Wicomico has a plan in place although the policy has not been adopted. Earlier this summer, Prince George’s County adopted its own “pay-to-play” policy following a growing trend among public school systems to offset the tough economy and stringent budget cuts.

Senate Keeps Messengers But House Of Representatives Will Not

The House of Representatives may be old, but it's not sentimental. After nearly 200 years, it's killing off its pages program. Since the 1920s, high school students have been plying the corridors of Capitol Hill, delivering messages and papers. But House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told House members they can no longer justify the $5 million annual cost of the program and that thanks to the rise of electronic communications, pages no longer have enough to do. The program ends August 31 in the House only. The Senate is keeping its messengers.

Fed Says It Will Hold Rates Fast Until Mid-2013

More explicit time frame, unusual for central bank, may be aimed at calming investors

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve sketched a dim outlook for the economy Tuesday, suggesting it will remain weak for two more years. As a result, the Fed said it expects to keep its key interest rate near zero through mid-2013.

It's the first time the Fed has pegged its "exceptionally low" rates to a specific date. The Fed had previously said only that it would keep it key rate at record lows for "an extended period."

A Thought For Today

If you purchased $1000 shares in Delta Airlines 1 year ago, you would have $49.00 today. If you purchased $1000 shares in AIG, you would have $33.00. If you purchased $1000 shares of Lehman Brothers, you would have $0.00 today. But, if you purchased $1000 worth of beer, drank it all, then turned in the aluminum cans for recycling, you would have $214.00. Therefore, the current investment plan is to drink heavily & recycle. It's called the 401keg plan.

Lost Dog

Hi Joe,

Thank you for being able to place the ad about our lost dog Rufus.

Rufus is a boxer around 5 years old, brindle in color with a white chest and white in his face between his eyes and forehead.
He weighs around 60 lbs.
He was last seen in the area of Camden and Hazel Ave. Saturday evening. He is very friendly.
Please contact Rachel at 443-614-0765

Thank you for your help!

Rachel Terzich
710 Camden Ave.

FAA To Get Back Pay

A new bill in the House would authorize back pay for furloughed FAA employees, GovExec reports. Republican Congressman Frank LoBiondo is expected to introduce the measure today. No retroactive pay was included for furloughed employees in the law passed last week extending the FAA's authorization through mid-September. That law did authorize retroactive pay and reimbursements for essential employees that worked through the shutdown including forty airport safety inspectors. The four thousand furloughed employees returned to work yesterday ending the two week partial shutdown.

Jobs Not Cuts Protest

Wednesday, 10 Aug 2011, 11:00 AM

Jobs Not Cuts - 0 miles away
Cong Andy Harris' Office, Salisbury
6 registered participant(s) (500 maximum)
224 W. Main Street
Salisbury, MD 21801
Hosted by Ron Pagano JD
Description The time has come to take back the issue of Jobs from the right-wing radicals who seem to be more interested in libertarian ideology than in creating Jobs! Proof of this is that Congress has declared a recess for a month, even though 75,000 people are affected by Congress' failure to continue the FAA's funding! There is no logic to their position, since Republican "leaders" are arguing about $200million, but are willing to accept a loss of airport fees of $200MILLION A WEEK (a BILLION DOLLARS by the time they return to DC in September)!!! The craziness has to stop and the public needs to know who is responsible and how we plan to change it!

Source

PetFlow's Cash Cow: $1 Million In Monthly Sales

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Alex Zhardanovsky and Joe Speiser created a multimillion-dollar pet supply company on a pet peeve: ordering and hauling around pet food.

PetFlow.com, a New York City-based online pet supply retailer, recently started making $1 million in monthly sales. And it is less than a year and a half old.

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Police Recruits Rejected For Academic Misconduct

BALTIMORE (AP) - Maryland Transportation Authority Police say 10 recruits were rejected on probation for academic misconduct.

Officials said Monday that the misconduct did not involve members of the academy staff or outside instructors and the integrity of grades, tests and course materials was not affected. Because it is a personnel matter, officials say they can't share more details of the misconduct.

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US Workers Were Less Productive In The Spring

WASHINGTON — U.S. workers were less productive in the spring for the second quarter in a row, a trend that may not bode well for future hiring.

Productivity dropped 0.3 percent in the April-June quarter, following a decline of 0.6 percent in the first three months of the year, the Labor Department said Tuesday. It was the first back-to-back decline in productivity since the second half of 2008.

The drop in productivity helped push unit labor costs up 2.2 percent. That follows a 4.8 percent rise in labor costs in the first three months of this year, the biggest increase since the last three months of 2008.

Rising labor costs reduce corporate profits. Labor represents the largest expense for most companies. And when workers are less productive and cost more, companies are less likely to add jobs.

Happy Ending: Boy Gets Wallet Back After Posting Sweet Letter

POQUOSON, Va. (AP) - A 9-year-old boy who left his wallet containing hundreds of dollars at a Virginia convenience store got it back after he posted a handwritten letter.

The Daily Press reports a woman returned the wallet and its contents to a 7-Eleven store in Poquoson.

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Breaking News-Fed's Hold Interest Rate

BREAKING NEWS

Federal Reserve Holding Interest Rates Near Zero Percent at Least Another Two Year

Source Fox News

Bridge Span To Get 1st Full Paint Job Since '73

$19.5M westbound project to be done by fall 2012

When was the last time you had a makeover? For the Bay Bridge, it's been a long time coming.

The westbound span is finally getting its first new look after almost 40 years of wearing the same paint.

The $19.5 million project to repaint the westbound Bay Bridge its signature shade of gray began a few weeks ago. But commuters still can expect minimal delays. The majority of maintenance - set to be completed in fall 2012 - will be performed from the water to minimize its effect on traffic, Maryland Transportation Authority spokeswoman Teri Moss said.

D.C. To Give Away 500 Helmets To Bikeshare Riders

WASHINGTON (AP) - Officials in the District of Columbia are looking to give away 500 bike helmets to riders who use the Capital Bikeshare program to rent wheels.

District officials are in the process of ordering the helmets, which will be given out to Bikeshare members at bike events in the fall. City law doesn't require riders over the age of 16 to wear helmets, but District Department of Transportation spokesman John Lisle says the city wants to encourage their use.

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Milton Lowers Boat-Dock Fees

Council hopes reduced costs will generate more revenue

MILTON — Milton officials are using basic economics to help generate a few extra bucks.

Since increasing boat dock fees in 2009, the town has seen a significant decrease in revenue. To regain that lost money, town council voted Aug. 1 to lower the fees and create an incentive for renting year round.

“It’s like when a doctor gives you medicine,” said Councilwoman Mary Hudson. “You need to give him feedback as to if it’s being effective. I think the higher rates are not being effective.”

A Teacher Never Forgotten

One day a teacher asked her students to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name.

Then she told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down.

It took the remainder of the class period to finish their assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed in the papers.

That Saturday, the teacher wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and listed what everyone else had said about that individual.

On Monday she gave each student his or her list. Before long, the entire class was smiling. 'Really?' she heard whispered. 'I never knew that I meant anything to anyone!' and, 'I didn't know others liked me so much,' were most of the comments.

No one ever mentioned those papers in class again. She never knew if they discussed them after class or with their parents, but it didn't matter. The exercise had accomplished its purpose. The students were happy with themselves and one another. That group of students moved on.

Several years later, one of the students was killed in

Vietnam and his teacher attended the funeral of that special student. She had never seen a serviceman in a military coffin before. He looked so handsome, so mature.

The church was packed with his friends. One by one those who loved him took a last walk by the coffin. The teacher was the last one to bless the coffin.

As she stood there, one of the soldiers who acted as pallbearer came up to her. 'Were you Mark's math teacher?' he asked. She nodded: 'yes.' Then he said: 'Mark talked about you a lot.'

After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates went together to a luncheon. Mark's mother and father were there, obviously waiting to speak with his teacher.

'We want to show you something,' his father said, taking a wallet out of his pocket 'They found this on Mark when he was killed. We thought you might recognize it.'

Opening the billfold, he carefully removed two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been taped, folded and refolded many times. The teacher knew without looking that the papers were the ones on which she had listed all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him.

'Thank you so much for doing that,' Mark's mother said. 'As you can see, Mark treasured it.'

All of Mark's former classmates started to gather around. Charlie smiled rather sheepishly and said, 'I still have my list. It's in the top drawer of my desk at home.'

Chuck's wife said, 'Chuck asked me to put his in our wedding album.'

'I have mine too,' Marilyn said. 'It's in my diary'

Then Vicki, another classmate, reached into her pocketbook, took out her wallet and showed her worn and frazzled list to the group. 'I carry this with me at all times,' Vicki said and without batting an eyelash, she continued: 'I think we all saved our lists'

That's when the teacher finally sat down and cried. She cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again.

The density of people in society is so thick that we forget that life will end one day. And we don't know when that one day will be.

Comcast, Delaware Forge Partnership To Bring Computers And Internet To Low Income Children

Comcast and the state of Delaware announced a partnership to bring computers and state-of-the-art Internet service to children from low-income families at low prices during a press conference held Thursday at the Wilmington PAL Center off North Market Street.

Comcast and state officials spoke of how the Internet is the great equalizer for these children, as about a dozen kids worked on computers on the second floor of the Police Athletic League Center.

Fill In The Blank

I'd rather give up ___________ than my cell phone.

BATTLE FOR MIDDLE EARTH

Futures Surge Overnight Following Accelerating Central Planning Takeover Of Global Capital Markets

The status quo are going to make their last stand today. The battle will be bloody. The existing social order will be swept away. Will it be today? I don’t know. But it will happen and it will be soon. They have lost control. The debt is strangling the world. There is no way out. It’s us versus them.

Anyone just waking up and noticing futures trading just barely below the closing print may get the impression that things are fine. They are not. Here is what has happened overnight as the global central planning cartel does everything in its power to prevent the global market rout, which has so far wiped out $7.8 trillion in market value around the world, from morphing into the catalyst that end the status quo. To wit: ECB resumes buying Italian and Spanish bonds (UniCredit says the bank is losing a “game of chicken” with lawmakers by not holding out for budget cuts and higher taxes, and may eventually need to print money), the G-20 is prepared to take joint measures to stem a global crisis, Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega said. Greece’s securities regulator banned all short-selling on the Athens exchange for two months starting today. Taiwan’s government bought stocks yesterday and this morning through four funds it controls. South Korea’s regulator asked pension funds, brokerages and asset-management companies to step up efforts to stabilize the market. South Korea also bans short selling for three months starting August 10. And lastly, rumors of an emergency Fed announcement are ripe. So… after all this global cartel intervention, is it any wonder that futures staged a near vertical move up overnight?

Source

US Offers Deal On School Reform

Delaware might be among the states that ask to forgo rules of the federal No Child Left Behind Act under a policy announced Monday by U.S. Department of Education.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY 8-9-11

“It is true that liberty is not free, nor is it easy. But tyranny – even varying degrees of it – is much more difficult, and much more expensive. The time has come to rein in the federal government, put it on a crash diet, and let the people keep their money and their liberty.”

Ron Paul

Bradley Building Demolition Waiting On State Case

Owners allow Caswell to demolish buildings

LEWES — Tearing down the offices of convicted rapist Earl Bradley has turned into a waiting game.

All the pieces are in place for the former BayBees Pediatrics to be torn down. Attorney Robert Gibbs represents Fulton Bank, which after foreclosing on the property has agreed to sell it to an unnamed third party. The buyers have said they intend to demolish Bradley's former office complex.

EASTON- The Kappa Theta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Inc. is sponsoring its 4th annual Community Health Fair and School Supply Give-Away 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, at the Idlewild Park Pavilion in Easton. The event is open to the public, free of charge.

Probation Officers Are Stretched Too Thin, Union Head Says

The state’s probation officers are overworked and stretched too thin, making their vital public safety role more difficult to fulfill, says the head of the union for parole and probation workers.

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Body Recovered Near Bay Bridge

SANDY POINT The body of an Anne Arundel County man was recovered Monday from the water near the William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial (Bay) Bridge. The man's car was earlier found abandoned on the bridge, authorities said.

Sgt. Jonathan Green of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police said the body of John Field Tooles, 64, of Severna Park, was recovered around 5 p.m.

If You Want To Lose Money, Sell Your Stocks Now

The plunges in the past week in the stock market are gut-wrenching but those who panic and sell off right now are going to be kicking themselves later, says legendary economist and former director of The Vanguard Group Burton Malkiel. The most you should do is rebalance your portfolio.

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Free Packs Of Expo Washable Markers @ Walgreens

Coupons just released a hot coupon good for $2/2 Expo Markers. Click here to visit the coupon site and if needed use the zip code 55555 and click the “Office Supplies” category to find it faster. You can use the coupon to score some pretty sweet deal @ Walgreens:

Buy 2 Expo Washable Markers (2-Pack) @ $.99 each
Click here to print the $2/2 Expo Markers coupon (If needed use the zip code 55555 and click the “Office Supplies” category to find it faster.)
Final cost - $0

Buy 2 Expo Washable Dry Erase Markers (4-pack) @ $1.99
Click here to print the $2/2 Expo Markers coupon (If needed use the zip code 55555 and click the “Office Supplies” category to find it faster.)
Final Cost – $1.98
Starting 8/14 through 8/20, Walgreens will have their 6-Pack Expo Markers on sale for $3.99, which you can get for free after coupons.

Buy 2 Expo Washable Dry Erase Markers (6-Pack) @ $3.99 each

Click here to visit the coupon site and print the $2/2 Expo Markers coupon. If needed use the zip code 55555 and click the “Office Supplies” category to find it faster.
Stack with the $3.00 off coupon found in the In-Store August Coupon Booklet (will deduct $6)

Final Cost – $0

BREAKING NEWS: Maryland’s AAA Rating From S&P Is Unchanged

ANNAPOLIS (August 9, 2011) - Standard & Poor’s has issued a report dated August 8, 2011, State And Local Government Ratings Are Not Directly Constrained By That Of The U.S. Sovereign. A complete copy of the report is available at http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/articles/en/us/?assetID=1245316634562

Standard & Poor’s Maryland analyst stated, “There is no action on MD's rating.” In the report S&P indicates, “A minority of state and local obligors rated by Standard & Poor’s have achieved the highest long-term rating of ‘AAA’. We expect that many of these obligors, particularly those with relatively low levels of funding interdependencies with the federal government or those that, in our view, are likely to manage declines in federal funding without weakening their credit profile, should be able to retain ratings above the U.S. sovereign rating…”

The State Treasurer’s Office has been and will continue to be in contact with all three rating agencies to emphasize the qualitative evaluation factors that should be considered by the rating agencies (e.g., a history of prudent financial management, a highly educated workforce, a strong, diverse economy, a Constitutionally dedicated tax for bond debt service and a fiscal condition that is better than most states) while they assess the impact of federal government actions.

Treasurer Kopp stated, “We are pleased to see that Standard & Poor’s is looking at the states individually, and we believe that Maryland’s prudent fiscal management will be viewed positively by the rating agencies as they review the states.”

The State Treasurer has noted that there was very strong investor demand for Maryland’s general obligation bonds in the recent bond sale on July 27, 2011 as demonstrated by the fact that the true interest cost was among the lowest since 1988. These bonds closed on August 5, 2011. Series A, totaling $71.7 million, was purchased by retail investors, primarily Maryland citizens. Series B, totaling $418.3 million, was purchased by Banc of America Merrill Lynch who had the winning bid of 7 bids. The State also received 8 and 9 bids on Series C and Series D, respectively.

"Foreclosure Factory" Draws Critics

It's a one-stop foreclosure shop. Under one roof is a law office, title company, and auction house. They act as their own notaries and can foreclose. Its owner and several of his top attorneys are even VPs at the Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc (MERS) which gives them the ability to transfer mortgages from owner to the other. The Boston Globe profiles a local law firm that has attracted criticism from homeowners and consumer advocates for its vertically integrated approach to foreclosure that can speedily ride over homeowners who thought they were in the middle of working out a deal with the bank.

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Signs You're About To Be Laid Off

Layoffs are a sorrowful fact of life in this downsizing-obsessed economy, and the earlier you know you're on the outs, the more time you'll have to prepare. While it's counterproductive to over-analyze your work environment while waiting for the inevitable "Can you step into my office?" overture from your supervisor and the HR lady, keeping your eyes open for obvious tells is a good idea.

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A Letter To The Editor 8-9-11

WILL ERICK SAHLER BECOME RICK POLLIT’S CHIEF OF STAFF?

Wicomico County residents should be concerned about the notion – and it’s more than a rumor if not yet an open secret – that Mr. Pollitt plans to appoint Erick Sahler, (formerly-?) of the Daily Times, as his "chief of staff" to exercise the County Executive’s administrative duties if the County Council allows that position to come into being as Pollitt has requested. Altogether, Mr. Sahler’s qualifications (training and experience) for that position total zilch, but we understand that he is a long time personal pal and political supporter of Rick Pollitt.

He would not be the first denizen of the Daily Times to feed from the County’s trough, joining both the current "public information officer," Mr. Fineran, and a prior one, George Roach, whose actions are a matter of local legend, in that respect.

Stay tuned for more on this topic as the world turns.

Breaking News

Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs, convicted on two counts of sexual assault of a child, sentenced to life in prison.

From CNN

28 Get Rabies Shots After Apt Complex Infested With Bats

28 different people have had rabies shots as a precaution against the horde of bats that have infested a Baltimore-area apartment complex.

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16,000 Cops On London's Streets As Rioting Worsens; Violence Spreads To Other Cities

'Ordinary people have had their lives turned upside down by this mindless thuggery'; PM promises 'even more robust police action'

LONDON — A wave of violence and looting raged across London and spread to three other major British cities on Tuesday, as authorities struggled to contain the country's worst unrest since race riots set the capital ablaze in the 1980s.

In London, groups of young people rampaged for a third straight night, setting buildings, vehicles and garbage dumps alight, looting stores and pelting police officers with bottles and fireworks. The spreading disorder was an unwelcome warning of the possibility of violence for leaders organizing the 2012 Summer Olympics in less than a year.

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What Does the S&P Downgrade Mean, If France Is Rated Higher Than the U.S.?

The decision by credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s to downgrade the United States [1] after markets closed on Friday may have kicked up political [2] consternation [3] and triggered a market plunge [4], but it also raises important questions about the reliability of credit ratings and, for that matter, the firms that bestow them.

Just over a dozen countries currently have an AAA [5]—or lowest-risk—rating from each of the three main rating agencies: Moody’s, Fitch, and Standard & Poor’s. Until this weekend, the United States was among them. (It’s now roughly on par with Australia, which also has two AAAs and one AA+.)

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