Gas Prices Up 83% Under Obama

Average for 1 gallon of regular unleaded was $1.79 in 2009

(CNSNEWS) — President Barack Obama listed rising gas prices as among the many reasons to extend the payroll tax cut Tuesday, flanked by individuals the White House promoted as being affected by $40 per paycheck the average American would lose if the tax cut is not extended at the end of February.

The payroll tax funds Social Security. Cutting the tax would reduce funding to Social Security by $119 billion over the next year, on top of the $105 billion reduced from funding in 2011.

While Republican lawmakers have expressed plans to vote for a full-year extension to the tax cut, Obama told his audience Tuesday at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington that they must put pressure on Congress.

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U.S. Carrier Group Makes Way Through Strait Of Hormuz

It was just after dawn when three U.S. warships and a carrier strike group began their long, tense transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

The strait has become a pressure point as Iran increases the heat of its rhetoric against the United States because of fresh economic sanctions imposed against it.

In December, Iranian officials warned the United States not to return to the Persian Gulf after the carrier USS John Stennis departed.

“You want to be always at the max state of readiness to respond to anything,” Capt. Richard McDaniel of the USS Sterett said.

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Heightened Security In U.S. Over Iran Threat

With Iran allegedly striking out at Israeli citizens and Jewish targets around the world, Israeli and American security officials in the U.S. are on high alert.

"We expect it and we are ready," one senior Israeli official told ABC News.

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Hollywood Finally Seeing The Light?

You won't believe what film industry is actually doing

HOLLYWOOD – In what may appear to be an extraordinary twist, nearly 50 movie stars and film producers gathered to celebrate faith, family and inspirational films at the Hollywood awards show often hailed as the “Christian Oscars.”

WND was on the scene Feb. 10 as Movieguide hosted its 20th Annual Faith & Values Awards Gala and Report to the Entertainment Industry at the Universal Hilton Hotel near the heart of Hollywood – where a number of popular films won awards for their morally uplifting content.

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Fox News Angers Some For 'Course Correction'

'Cable news is a notch above just being on the Internet'

(AZCENTRAL) — As a white, male, middle-aged conservative talk radio host from Virginia, John Fredericks is something close to the Platonic ideal of a Fox News fan.

And until last year, he was one. But then Fox’s treatment of the Republican primary race — the presentation of Karl Rove as a political analyst despite his having “thrown in for Romney” and Sean Hannity’s clear ties to the Republican establishment — began to grate on him. So he changed the channel.

“I’ve gone from all Fox to no Fox, and replaced it with CNN, which I think right now is giving me a much fairer analysis of what’s going on,” he said. “I feel they’ve lost that independent conservative mantra that had drove people like me to them. I used to feel that I got it straight, and I got an independent conservative view. Now, what I get is some wholly owned subsidiary of the RNC (Republican National Committee).”

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Woman Sentenced For Giving Teen Abortion Pill

Sandra Craine Gave Teen RU-486 Abortion Pill

ELKTON, Md. -- A woman who gave a pregnant 16-year-old the abortion pill has been sentenced to six months of home detention.

Sandra Craine, 62, of Elkton, pleaded guilty in December to reckless endangerment by giving the teen a dose of RU-486 that she ordered online from an overseas website.

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Only In Salisbury, You Can't Win An Election With The TRUTH

Let Barrie Tilghman, Mike Dunn, Lynn Cathcart, Bruce Patterson, Laura Mitchell, Jonathan Taylor, SAPOA, the Daily Times & Shanie Shields come after me for what I'm about to say. The TRUTH absolutely kills these people and they know it.

So why are we seeing all these Press Conferences from the Mayor and the minority of the Council? Why are they LYING on a regular basis and getting away with it?

I'll tell you EXACTLY why. BECAUSE THEY CAN'T WIN AN ELECTION WITH THE TRUTH!

It's easier to lie, who's going to stop them. They tried to win regular elections and they fell flat on their face. So they run to the Daily Times with fabricated LIES and the Daily Times prints whatever they say without any concern. It's not their words, it's the word of those spewing the information.

Why are they holding these press conferences weekly, because the more headlines they get, the more people are going to believe it to be the truth.

However, TODAY, when I called Laura Mitchell out on the 3-2 track record votes and I asked, WHY do you and Shanie always vote NO to everything, a light bulb went on in Laura's head because she knew I had just called her out on their own civility. You see, I don't get invited to these press conferences because unlike the rest of the MSM attending, I wasn't just hired yesterday, or a week ago. As I stated to Laura in today's meeting, I've been around for 8 years and I'm NOT falling for this crap.

Now you can expect the Daily Times NOT to publish ANYTHING I stated in today's press conference. Why, because their agenda is to get rid of Debbie, Terry & Tim. They have no other goal. They have no interest in telling the truth. They will publish what has been sent to them in Laura's press release and they will violate no part of their own standards. If someone else states it, it is the truth, to them.

So just what kind of service are you getting from your local Media. WMDT is pissed off that the Council didn't fold to Palmer Gillis' proposal for the old Fire House and Feldman's. So they too will produce whatever is hand delivered. They didn't even have a reporter there. WHAT FOR! The Mayor and Laura Mitchell put it in writing and they just go with that, its that simple. The service the MSM is providing is nothing close to the truth.

So now we're getting a solid idea as to why things are going the way they are with the Main Stream Media any more. Salisbury News numbers keep skyrocketing because you know what Folks, we deliver the TRUTH. We challenge these public officials and we ask for answers. Heck, today I asked the majority of questions at the press conference and the one time the DT's asked a question, she just repeated something I had already asked and so did WMDT. Have you seen ANYTUHING in the MSM referencing the Board of Education? They have access to the same information we've been providing. They have an agenda, we do NOT. Unless you want to consider the truth an agenda, then I'm guilty.

So, if the Mayor wants a PR War, I'll deliver one but at least on my behalf it will be based on the TRUTH.

Shame on ALL of those names I have called out above. They don't care what you people think. They will lie and cheat every possible way they know how. Let the war begin because I will NOT allow them to win an election based on lies. If they want a win, put up some candidates that aren't living off the government, that haven't declared bankruptcy, that don't LIE on a regular basis.

The outcome, they cannot win because they cannot tell the truth. Suggesting, (right now) that the majority of citizens can't stand Debbie, Terry and Tim is a farce. Don't believe me, START A RECALL PETITION. They won't even attempt it because it will PROVE they are liars.

Fox News Moves Toward The Left, Politico Reports

Fox News is taking a turn toward the left and viewers are noticing.

"The grumblers were picking up on a strategy that has been under way for some time — a 'course correction,' as Fox chief Roger Ailes put it last fall — with the network distancing itself from the tea party cheerleading that characterized the first two years of President Barack Obama’s presidency," Politico reported.

Earlier this month, the network hired openly gay liberal activist Sally Kohn as a contributor. That didn't sit well with loyal Fox viewers.

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Wounded Warrior Flash Mob Converges On National Mall

So who were the people gathered on the mall Tuesday - some in Valentine's pink and red? They were a mix of people, from a Columbia cake decorator to a stay-at-home mom with two kids to a real estate developer.

They were complete strangers who were going to take part in a flash mob - but not the criminal kind. They gathered to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project.

“Everybody has thanked me for being in the military, so I'm doing my part to thank them,” says former Marine Jake Stephenson.

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Virginia Senate Wants Welfare Recipients To Take Drug Tests

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The Virginia Senate has passed legislation to require drug screening of welfare recipients.

The Republican-backed bill passed 20-19 Tuesday and now goes to the House of Delegates, which has postponed its version of the measure until 2013.

Sen. Steve Martin of Chesterfield County said his bill would ensure that state welfare money is being spent as it is intended - to support families and children.

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Photos Of Delmarva From The International Space Station

BRIEF RESPONSE OF COUNCIL PRESIDENT TERRY COHEN TO COUNCILWOMAN’S ALLEGATIONS

At 4:42 p.m. today, I received from Daily Times reporter Sarah Lake the press release Councilwoman Laura Mitchell handed out at her press conference. The release has too many allegations to which I can respond in the short time allowed by the media’s deadlines and my own schedule.

While Ms. Mitchell was preparing for her press conference, I was working on advancing a meeting of governments on the tax differential after planning a work session agenda addressing topics such as zoning appeal changes, the proposed crime legislation of the mayor’s, and election redistricting. This was after updating the Council and Mayor by email on my hour- to hour-and-a-half-long meeting with the new city attorney yesterday.

A quick read of Ms. Mitchell’s press release indicates there are factually incorrect statements, with allegations to which I can respond more fully later. Time derailed by answering these manufactured press dramas would be better spent on the full workload the City faces, issues like the Wastewater Treatment Plant, the $67+ million Capital Improvement Plan, and more.

Proof That Laura Mitchell Has A Fan Club

Mind you, they're literally fans, (as seen behind her). All kidding aside, Laura Mitchell is fed up and is asking for a change in leadership on the City Council. She claims she's getting more than 16 calls a day from people outraged at the behavior of the City Council leadership.

Gary Pusey stated that something needs to be done. I chimed in and stated that IF there are as many people as Laura CLAIMS that support her in this quest, there IS a process and it's called a recall petition, something this group should be very familiar with.

I stated that Laura AND the Mayor need to STOP calling Press Conferences and grandstanding. I explained how I have been around this Council as well as many others and have seen the shoe on the other foot, I understand their frustration. For many years it was Debbie Campbell up against 4 other Council Members. Then it was Debbie and Terry up against 3 Council Members. Now they are a majority and I believe they are doing the work of the City.

Laura mentioned that it is Wednesday afternoon and they have still not received this week's briefing book. Well, I looked into that as soon as I returned. Do you know WHY there's no briefing book, because the administration has NOT turned over their information to the Council President, (the Mayor's office, that is) therefore what do they expect, miracles?

I then challenged Laura by saying, I just happened to be on the phone with a Council Member when I heard the ding on their computer. They interrupted me and said, I just got a message about the Press Conference and that was 10 minutes before it was supposed to start. So I asked Laura, why are you requesting the rest of the Council to give you a heads up when you only sent this press conference information 10 minutes before it started. Laura replied she wasn't going to send it at all but she was so mad she decided to let them know she was holding it.

My point to ALL of this is this. BOTH sides need to sit down and openly discuss their differences. They need to try to find some common ground, if possible. If that doesn't work, then they need to go to Conflict and Resolution. Laura said she tried that but the Mayor wasn't willing to participate. Well, the Mayor doesn't need to be there, does he?????

To me, a lot of this has to do with power. Or should I say, the lack thereof. The day before their very first Council Meeting Laura Mitchell went by Debbie Campbell's home. Debbie's Father in Law had just passed away and Laura brought a cake. She pulled Debbie aside and said, I'd like to discuss something with you. She went on to say she would like to be Council President. For what it's worth, this was very tacky, the night before the Council Meeting while people were gathering after a funeral.

Nevertheless, I personally believe Terry Cohen is by far the most qualified person to ever sit on the City Council and by far the best Council President Salisbury has even been fortunate enough to have. I also believe Debbie Campbell is the most honorable woman I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. These are two very well educated women who serve this City like no one ever has. Tim Spies is also a very intelligent man and when you look at the NUMBER RESULTS from the votes, the proper people are sitting in the proper position.

The shoe is now on the other foot and quite frankly, Jim Ireton, Mike Dunn, Barrie Tilghman, Lynn Cathcart and several others, (the Dirty Dozen) just don't like it. The hissy fits need to STOP. The press conferences need to STOP.

Yes, there are a LOT of people talking about the Salisbury City Council. However, they have been talking about them for more than 10 years! Have we forgotten Barrie Tilghman's Daughter physically assaulting Rachel Polk? NOTHING like that has ever happened since.

Come on now people. Its time to grow up and act like adults. So you don't have the MAJORITY. Quit bellyaching about it and IF what you say is so true, well, I guess the MAJORITY of those people you claim come in masses will vote Debbie, Terry and Tim out, now, won't they. Do the job you were hired to do and stop this ridiculous grandstanding and that especially goes out to Mayor Jim Ireton. His calling a press conference once a week to LIE and mislead the public has got to end. He's like a 3 year old not getting his way.

STOP telling people your not getting briefing books and ask the MAYOR why, not the Council President.

New Posts to fall below.

Patrol Car Tape Leads To Suit Against Ex-Deputy

McLEAN, Va. — A former Loudoun County sheriff's deputy is facing a federal civil rights lawsuit after a patrol car camera appeared to show him knocking out an unsuspecting target with a blow to the back of the head delivered at a full sprint.

Sterling, Va., resident Carlos Garcia filed the lawsuit last year in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, but papers were served only recently on the defendant, Terry Daniel, who resigned from the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office last year.

Garcia's lawyer, Victor Glasberg, said the video — which has been posted on YouTube — is clear and unambiguous evidence of an unprovoked assault. It shows Garcia standing with his hands in the air next to another deputy and his back turned as Daniel approaches rapidly. Garcia collapses immediately after being struck by the deputy.

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The Real 1%

THE GINGHAM DRESS

Just ill another lesson in life... Never judge a book by its cover, even though we still do.

A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband, dressed in a homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked timidly without an appointment into the Harvard University President's outer office.

The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods, country hicks had no business at Harvard & probably didn't even deserve to be in Cambridge.

"We'd like to see the president," the man said softly.

"He'll be busy all day," the secretary snapped.

"We'll wait," the lady replied.

For hours the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally become discouraged and go away.

They didn't, and the secretary grew frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was a chore she always regretted.

"Maybe if you see them for a few minutes, they'll leave," she said to him!

He sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, and he detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office.

The president, stern faced and with dignity, strutted toward the couple.

The lady told him, "We had a son who attended Harvard for one year. He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was accidentally killed. My husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him, somewhere on campus."

The president wasn't touched. He was shocked. "Madam," he said, gruffly, "we can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery."

"Oh, no," the lady explained quickly. "We don't want to erect a statue. We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard."

The president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun suit, then exclaimed, "A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the physical buildings here at Harvard."

For a moment the lady was silent. The president was pleased. Maybe he could get rid of them now.

The lady turned to her husband and said quietly, "Is that all it cost to start a university? Why don't we just start our own? " Her husband nodded.

The president's face wilted in confusion and bewilderment.

Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford got up and walked away, traveling to Palo Alto, California where they established the university that bears their name, Stanford University, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer cared about.

You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who they think can do nothing for them.

--- A TRUE STORY By Malcolm Forbes

Asset Protection And Internet Privacy

Following progress of the Ron Paul campaign from across the "pond" in Europe has been interesting and inspiring. The world desperately needs a breather from the headlong race to totalitarianism and a Ron Paul victory would at the very least have a major decongestant effect everywhere. Even more importantly – his message continues to have a major effect in changing hearts and minds.

But there are many more minds to be changed. On this side of the Atlantic, while there are still plenty of right wing socialists – conservatives of the militaristic warmongering kind – the influence of left wing socialism is much more overt. So it was no surprise to watch that upper elite Brit, Piers Morgan continually and rudely interrupt Ron Paul on screen recently.

Caring for the poor was the main focus of attack. Morgan's views are those of the typical "champagne socialist" – filled with a self righteousness that implies those who support state welfare are the ones who really care.

That sentiment matches a certain quotation… probably by someone famous... who knows? It goes something like this: "I give to the poor and they call me a saint. I ask why they are poor and they call me a communist."

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On To Tehran - Or Is It Damascus?

Our War Party has been temporarily diverted from its clamor for war on Iran by the insurrection against the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad.

Estimates of the dead since the Syrian uprising began a year ago approach 6,000. And responsibility for the carnage is being laid at the feet of the president who succeeded his dictator-father Hafez al-Assad, who ruled from 1971 until his death in 2000.

Unlike Egypt's Hosni Mubarak who buckled, broke and departed after three weeks of protests, Bashar is not going quietly.

And, predictably, with the death toll rising, those champions of world democratic revolution – John McCain, Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham – have begun beating the drums for U.S. aid to a "Free Syrian Army."

Last week, the three senators jointly declared:

"In Libya, the threat of imminent atrocities in Benghazi mobilized the world to act. Such atrocities are now a reality in Homs and other cities all across Syria. ... We must consider ... providing opposition groups inside Syria, both political and military, with better means to ... defend themselves, and to fight back against Assad's forces."

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Sen. Toomey: Obama Budget 'Unbelievable'

President Barack Obama’s budget proposal is "unbelievable" and will make the nation’s financial situation worse, Sen. Pat Toomey tells Newsmax.TV.

The president's budget is at best nothing more than a campaign document designed to boost his re-election chances, the Pennsylvania Republican said.

“Campaign document at best,” Toomey said of the president’s proposal.

“Unfortunately, this dysfunctional Senate, controlled by the Democrats and Sen. [Harry] Reid, has made it clear they will not do a budget. It’s just unbelievable to me, but this is the third year in a row now that they feel no obligation to provide Americans with a blueprint for how they intend to deal with this fiscal disaster we have.

“The president’s proposed a budget that would make it worse, literally. Huge tax increases. He takes all that money and spends it, and then some. So the huge spending increase, despite the tax increases, result in an even bigger deficit next year than the one we had this year. So the president makes the deficit worse, grows spending, raise taxes, and, in the process, we do a lot of damage to the economy. It’s really unbelievable how counterproductive this budget would be.”

Regardless, Toomey said that some of the Democrats on the Budget Committee have expressed a desire to reach an agreement on the budget.

“They have the decency to be embarrassed by their own party by the fact that the party is so clearly shirking its responsibility,” he said. “There is some possibility that we’ll do a budget in this Budget Committee, but Sen. Reid controls the Senate floor and he has stated unequivocally that they’re not going to do a budget on the Senate floor. It’s just amazing to me that they can actually ask the American people to be in control when they refuse to do even the minimum type of obligations of a governing party.”

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Obama Mulls 80 Percent Reduction Of Nuclear Arsenal

The Obama administration is weighing options for drastic new cuts to the U.S. nuclear force, including a reduction of up to 80 percent in the number of deployed weapons. Even the most modest option would be a historic disarmament step, although the plan is in line with President Barack Obama's 2009 pledge to pursue the elimination of nuclear weapons.

[Maybe we can replace our nukes with a more convincing bow to foreign leaders, eh? -- Editor]

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Feds Recover $4.1 Billion In Health Care Fraud

Federal patrol teams helped recover a record-breaking $4.1 billion in health care fraud money last year, USA Today reports. That's a 58 percent increase since 2009, when the departments of Health and Human Services and Justice created an action team to combat fraud. They also stepped up the number of Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams that educate seniors, local governments and others about fraud prevention. Officials say agencies are doing a better job of screening providers before they get in the system and have beefed up enrollment requirements. Health and Human Services has published a proposed rule that sets a deadline for providers and suppliers to return Medicare overpayments.

Obama Doesn't Want Old Timers To Retire

President Obama doesn't want to say goodbye to older feds who are ready to retire. His 2013 budget includes a plan to let them work part time and receive an annuity part time. The Federal Times reports, the White House sees this as a way to pass on knowledge from one generation of feds to another. It could also ease the pressure on agencies to hire temps to fill critical skills gaps. Retirees come back to the government to work part time now, but they get their full pensions and can only work for a limited period of time.

Federal Workforce To Stay Roughly The Same

Although spending will rise by $200 billion under the administration's 2013 budget request, the federal workforce will stay roughly the same size. About 2,400 new people would be added to the government payroll under the Obama administration proposal. But some agencies would gain lots of people, while others will lose them. The Treasury workforce would grow by more then 3 percent, and the Securities and Exchange Commission by 15 percent. But the Broadcasting Board of Governors would lose 5 percent of its people and the Office of Personnel Management 7 percent.

Those Poor Federal Employees!

Survey: Federal morale deeply impacted by pay freeze, 'fed bashing'

Federal managers and employees alike are suffering from low morale problems, according to the results of an exclusive Federal News Radio survey. They say the federal pay freeze, fed bashing from members of Congress and the public, as well as ineffective managers are mostly to blame. The survey is part of our three-day special report, "Managing Morale."

BAD WEEK FOR FREEDOM

With each passing week it seems this country spirals further into the depths of a frightening dystopian fantasy reminiscent of Huxley and Orwell’s dark world of isolation, fear and government brutality portrayed in their masterpieces Brave New World and 1984. I keep speculating whether it’s me that’s crazy and not the things I’m witnessing on a daily basis. The President signs the National Defense Authorization Act, passed by an overwhelming majority of Congress, which allows the government to imprison American citizens indefinitely without charge. And there is barely a squeak from the docile masses as they are soothed by Obama promising to never use that part of the law. I bet you $10,000 a President will invoke that portion of the NDAA in the very near future.

Jon Corzine, a card carrying member of the ruling elite .01%, remains free to roam one of his five palatial estates after stealing $1.6 billion from the accounts of farmers, widows, and thousands of other “clients” of MF Global. In his spare time he raises money for Obama’s re-election campaign. The Federal government, Federal courts and Wall Street banking cabal have circled the wagons and declared the money just vaporized, even though it sits in Jamie Dimon’s vaults at J.P. Morgan. No one is being prosecuted for this deliberate thievery. The psychopathic Wall Street criminals have been getting away with murder for so long they act invulnerable to societal mores and scoff at our laws, rules and regulations. Those are for the 99%. When you control the politicians, regulators, courts, and mainstream media, it’s easy to get away with murder. The jackals and hyenas are laughing in their NYC penthouse suites as they continue to collect $20 million bonuses for a job well done.

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Alexandria Coal-Fired Plant Fined $208,700

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - An Alexandria coal-burning power plant scheduled in October has been fined about $280,700 for violating air-quality laws.

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Iran Loads Own Fuel Rods Into Research Reactor

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran began loading domestically made nuclear fuel rods into its Tehran research reactor on Wednesday, a defiant move in response to toughening Western sanctions over its controversial nuclear program.

The official IRNA news agency said President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad inserted the first Iranian-made rod into the reactor in northern Tehran, and state TV broadcast live images from the ceremony with Iranian nuclear experts briefing Ahmadinejad on the process.

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House-Senate Negotiators Reach Tentative Payroll Tax Cut Pact

House-Senate talks on renewing a payroll tax cut that delivers about $20 a week to the average worker yielded a tentative agreement Tuesday night, with lawmakers hopeful of unveiling the pact Wednesday and sending the measure to President Barack Obama as early as this week.

The pact received a mixed but generally positive reception from rank-and-file House Republicans, who discussed the matter at a meeting Tuesday evening, aides said.

"The plan provides temporary tax relief for American families and takes off the table a false political attack the president and congressional Democrats wanted to use all year long — that somehow Republicans were standing in the way of a middle class tax cut," a House GOP leadership aide said.

Under the outlines of the emerging agreement, a 2 percentage point cut in the Social Security payroll tax would be extended through the end of the year, with the nearly $100 billion cost added to the deficit. Jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed also would be renewed, with the $30 billion or so cost paid for in part through auctioning broadcast spectrum to wireless companies and requiring federal workers to contribute more toward their pensions.

Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, said it was described to lawmakers as a tentative agreement.

The payroll tax cut and renewing jobless benefits were key planks in Obama's jobs program, which was announced in September. The payroll tax cut benefits 160 million Americans and delivers a tax cut of about $20 a week for a typical worker making $50,000 a year. People making a $100,000 salary would get a $2,000 tax cut.

The deal not only would be a win for Obama but also would take the payroll tax fight, which put Republicans on the defensive, off the table for the fall election campaign.

"The mood is to get it off the table," freshman Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., said. "We've got to move on to another issue."

The agreement also would avert a huge cut in Medicare payments to doctors, financed by cuts elsewhere in the federal healthcare budget, Republican and Democratic aides said.

Aides in both parties said Senate Democrats were largely rebuffed in an effort to renew a package of expired tax breaks for individuals and businesses, including clean energy tax credits cherished by Democrats. A tax break sought by businesses that purchase new equipment was dropped as well.

A GOP aide, who required anonymity to discuss the talks, said negotiators are finalizing an agreement on reducing the number of weeks jobless workers would be eligible to receive unemployment benefits to a maximum of 63 weeks in most states. People in states with very high unemployment rates would be eligible additional weeks. Maximum benefits are now 99 weeks in states with the highest jobless rates.

And in a win for the Hispanic community, Republicans would drop a proposal to require that low-income workers who claim a refundable child tax credit be required to have a Social Security number. The proposal was aimed at blocking illegal immigrants from claiming the credit, but the idea created a firestorm among Hispanics who pointed out that many of the children affected by the cutoff are U.S. citizens.

Republicans also were expected to drop a proposal requiring unemployed people to enroll in GED classes to obtain benefits, and a GOP proposal allowing states to employ drug tests as a condition of receiving unemployment benefits would be scrapped as well. But Republicans won a provision requiring jobless people to be more diligent in job searches as a condition of receiving benefits.

The legislation would also extend welfare grants to states.

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Dear Maryland Marriage Supporters

We just got word that Maryland Delegate Patrick Hogan is making the statement that while he has heard from hundreds of people who support gay marriage, he has not heard from people from the other side of the issue that believe in natural marriage. Please make a phone call now to his office and let him know that you are for preserving traditional marriage.

If asked if you are a constituent of Del. Hogan, ( Fredrick) please make the point that this legislation would affect all of Maryland, and that you are a Maryland Citizen. If you have time to make one phone call right now, please make this one. It is critically important that Del. Hogan hear feedback from all of us immediately!

Patrick Hogan (410) 841-3240 patrick.hogan@house.state.md.us

Thank you!
http://www.marylandmarriagealliance.com/

Looking For Love In All The Electronic Places: Older People Now Really Getting Into Online Dating

It wouldn't be Valentine's Day week without the prerequisite romance and dating news crawling out to remind everyone that yes, there are single people in the world, and they're looking for love. And guess what? It's not just you young kids surfing the net for a match, as a new study says the fastest growing age group in online dating are those over 60.

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HB-438 Same Sex Marriage: CALL TODAY!!!!!! NOW!!!

These guys are on the fence and are being solicited by the Governor. Wtihout Republican help, this bill dies. You need to contact them NOW.

The folks need to engage even though these guys are not on the shore.

Those interested in opposing Same Sex Marriage need to email, call, and otherwise contact the following delegates who need encouragement:

A. WADE KACH
Republican, District 5B, Baltimore County
House Office Building, Room 2016 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 841-3359, (301) 858-33591-800-492-7122, ext. 3359 (toll free)
e-mail: a.wade.kach@house.state.md.us
fax: (410) 841-3850, (301) 858-3850

ROBERT A. COSTA
214 Ashland Road, Cockeysville, MD 21030 - 1902
(410) 527-1962 Republican, District 33B, Anne Arundel County
House Office Building, Room 1596 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 841-3551, (301) 858-35511-800-492-7122, ext. 3551 (toll free)e-mail: bob.costa@house.state.md.usfax: (410) 841-3549, (301) 858-3549

Turn Newspapers Into Firewood

If you like to sit by your fireplace on a cold night but aren't a fan of buying and storing a bunch of firewood, a pile of newspaper is all you need to stoke the flames of relaxation. You can transform loose papers into logs in a few simple steps.

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Owning A Smaller, Cheaper Car Doesn't Necessarily Mean You'll Pay Less For Insurance

Thinking you've scored a great deal by buying a smaller, cheaper car might not be entirely correct, as one report indicates owners of such vehicles might end up paying more in insurance than some of their fellow drivers.

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Family Resorts To Public Humiliation To Stop Teen From Stealing

What's a parent to do with a sticky-fingered teenager who keeps stealing things from other family members? For one Memphis family, the answer was to make that teen stand on a busy street corner holding up a "I steal from my family" sign.

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RSC Update: Obama Busts Liberals’ Favorite Myth (and the Budget)

From The Chairman:

Shortly after taking office, President Obama promised to cut the deficit in half by the end of his four year-term. Considering how much his stimulus plan and other spending increases ballooned the starting deficit, it seemed an easy promise to keep.

Well, he just broke that promise beyond all recognition. Barack Obama isn’t just the only president ever to oversee a $1 trillion deficit. The budget he proposed today has him running the deficit over $1 trillion for the fourth straight year!

In addition to busting the budget, he accidentally busts one of the Left’s favorite myths – the notion that huge tax increases on wealthy Americans will put an end to deficits. Even with the massive tax hikes liberals have sought for years (and an $850 billion gimmick of “saving” money that was never going to be spent), President Obama’s budget never balances. Never.

In reality, paying for all the spending President Obama demands would mean a huge tax increase on middle class families. That’s a clear recipe for fewer jobs and a more bloated government. It’s why conservatives want to cut, cap, and balance the budget. It’s one of the reasons we must repeal ObamaCare. And it shows the undeniable need for our Jobs Through Growth Act.

This country has a choice to make. We can choose the Obama road to debt, doubt, and decline, or we can choose the conservative path of less spending, more jobs, and better opportunities for everyone.

God Bless,

Congressman Jim Jordan
Chairman, Republican Study Committee

Post Office Closings Isolate Small Towns And Poor

'There's still a real digital divide between rural and urban America'

Postal officials were blunt in December when they stood before 120 residents in Dedham, Iowa, to tell them why their town's post office has to close. The Internet, officials said, was killing the U.S. Postal Service.

"Well, I have no Internet," resident Judy Ankenbauer said at the meeting. Like many of Dedham's 280 residents, Ankenbauer said she still relies on the post office to buy stamps and send letters and packages.

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Environment Maryland Responds To The President’s Budget

BALTIMORE – Today President Obama announced his budget proposal for fiscal year 2013.

Ewa Krason, Environment Maryland Field Organizer, released the following statement:

“There’s never been a more important time to invest in a cleaner, greener, healthier future. The President’s budget shows real leadership in building a clean energy economy in the United States, and Maryland, powered by pollution-free energy and thousands of local jobs, as well as continued support for conservation of the places we love. Additionally, the President’s proposal to increase funding for public transit will help reduce our oil dependence.

“President Obama’s proposals to invest in protecting public health and the environment stand in stark contrast to the House Republicans’ attempts to decimate EPA’s budget, zero out land and water conservation funding, and eliminate dedicated transit funding.”

As Legislators Debate Clean Energy, Report Outlines Extreme Weather In Maryland

New Report and Online Map to Show How Many Marylanders Affected by Weather Disasters, Review Science Exploring Link to Global Warming

WHAT:
2011 set records nationally for extreme weather and weather-related disasters. Environment Maryland will hold a press conference to release a new Environment Maryland report and launch an interactive online map documenting how many Marylanders live in counties hit by recent weather-related disasters. The report will also outline how global warming could lead to certain extreme weather events becoming even more common or more severe in the future.

The report is being released as Maryland officials consider ways to improve the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), and look to pass the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2012 (SB 237 and HB 441) to bring more home-grown and pollution-free clean energy to the state, while limiting the carbon pollution that fuels global warming.

WHO:
· Del. Tomas Hucker, Maryland House of Delegates (District 20)
· Maria Broadbent, Director, Department of Neighborhood and Environmental Programs for the City of Annapolis
· Ewa Krason, Field Organizer, Environment Maryland

WHEN: Thursday, February 16, 2012
11:30 AM

WHERE: City Dock Pier in Annapolis, MD at Susan B. Campbell Park


VISUALS: Backdrop of the Chesapeake Bay at the Annapolis City Dock, a place that has been affected by weather-related disasters in recent years. The online interactive map will go live on Environment State’s website shortly after Thursday’s press event.

SHOCKING ABC News On Obama/USA Infrastructure

Amazing, I don't remember Obama announcing this in his State of The Union Address!

Diane Sawyer reporting on U.S. bridge projects going to the Chinese... NOT Americans.

The bridges are right here in the U.S. and yet Obama has approved for Chinese contractors to come in and do the work. What about jobs for Americans???

Watch this video. It doesn't take long to view.

This one should be tough for the supporters of the current regime to swallow....AND it comes from ABC NEWS...no Snopes or Wikileaks on this one!!

U.S.A. Bridges and Roads Being Built by Chinese Firms

Shocking to say the least! This video is a jaw-dropper that will make you sick. (It was also shocking that ABC was actually reporting this story.)

The lead-in with Obama promising jobs in the U.S. by improving our infrastructure is so typical of all his promises! Our tax dollars are at work - for CHINA!!!

I pray all the unemployed see this and cast their votes accordingly in 2012!

Click here: U.S. Bridges, Roads Being Built by Chinese Firms Video - ABC News

Wildlife Agents May Get Weapons Stripped

A bill in Congress could strip wildlife agents of their firearms. The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association opposes the bill. The association says most reasonable people know that game wardens and wildlife agents routinely encounter hunters and others with weapons. In a press release, the union says agents and officers enforcing environmental laws are nine times as likely to be assaulted with a weapon than other law enforcement officers. The bill's sponsor. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) says wildlife officers use the current law to put violators in prison, but the law's authors intended it to be used only for civil penalties.

Obama: Not Raising Taxes Is A Form Of Government Spending

Announcing his budget plans for fiscal year 2013 in an address at Northern Virginia Community College in Annandale, Va., President Barack Obama characterized the current income tax rates--signed into law by President Bush a decade ago--as a form of government spending.

Essentially, the president said that the federal government "spends" when it does not raise taxes.

“Right now, we’re scheduled to spend more than $1 trillion more on what was intended to be a temporary tax cut for the wealthiest two percent of Americans,” Obama said. “We’ve already spent about that much. Now we’re expected to spend another $1 trillion. Keep in mind, a quarter of all millionaires pay lower tax rates than millions of middle class households. You’ve heard me say it: Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary.”

Despite the bankruptcies of three green energy companies that received heavy doses of federal tax dollars, Obama also pledged Monday to “double down on clean energy.”

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The Latest Obamacare Overreach

Many religious conservatives understandably are upset with the latest Obamacare mandate, which will require religious employers (including Catholic employers) to provide birth control to workers receiving healthcare benefits. This mandate includes certain birth control devices that are considered abortifacients, like IUDs and the "morning after" pill.

Of course, Catholic teachings forbid the use of any sort of contraceptive devices, so this rule is anathema to the religious beliefs of Catholic employers. Religious freedom always has been considered sacrosanct in this country. However, our federal bureaucracy increasingly forces Americans to subsidize behaviors they find personally abhorrent, either through agency mandates or direct transfer payments funded by tax dollars.

Proponents of this mandate do not understand the gravity of forcing employers to subsidize activities that deeply conflict with their religious convictions. Proponents also do not understand that a refusal to subsidize those activities does not mean the employer is "denying access" to healthcare. If employers don't provide free food to employees, do we accuse them of starving their workers?

In truth this mandate has nothing to do with healthcare, and everything to do with the abortion industry and a hatred for traditional religious values. Obamacare apologists cannot abide any religious philosophy that promotes large, two parent, nuclear, heterosexual families and frowns on divorce and abortion. Because the political class hates these values, it feels compelled to impose—by force of law—its preferred vision of society: single parents are noble; birth control should be encouraged at an early age; and abortion must be upheld as an absolute moral right.

So the political class simply tells the American people and American industry what values must prevail, and what costs much be borne to implement those values. This time, however, the political class has been shocked by the uproar to the new mandate that it did not anticipate or understand.

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Word On The Street Is Laura Mitchell Is Calling For A Press Conference At 3 PM

Word is, she wants to ask for Councilwomen Terry Cohen and Debbie Campbell's resignation.

Look, I've had just about enough of this woman's crap. Never in past history has one Council Member disrespected the system like Laura Mitchell has.

Their grandstanding, (along with Mayor Ireton, Shields & Dunn) is just over the top. Filing ethics charges, petition drives and publicly attacking co council members with personal attacks must end.

I've been told this go around Laura Mitchell wants to go after them for their vote on the towing ordinance. Laura, read my 12:00 Post. Are you really that stupid? Are you really that CLUELESS? Do I need to go back and get the audio and publish your own decisions in that work session, because I will.

No Mayor in past history has ever called for so many weekly press conferences. If the two of you want a war, I'll bring you a war like you've never experienced before. Council Members Tim Spies, Terry Cohen and Debbie Campbell are trying to do the business of the City. You don't see them calling for multiple press conferences. They're doing what they were hired to do. Try it some time, you may actually learn something.

NYPD "Stop And Frisks" Hit All-Time High

City police officers stopped and questioned 684,330 people on the street last year.

The number of so-called "stop and frisks" is rising.

City police officers stopped and questioned 684,330 people on the street last year, a record since the NYPD began yearly tallies of the tactic in 2002 and a 14 percent increase over 2010.

It couldn't be determined how many people were patted down during the encounters, according to the Wall Street Journal.

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Wicomico County Sheriff's Office Press Releases 2-15-12

Incident: Possession of Marijuana / Assault
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: 31000 block of Bennett Road, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Joseph C. Kutchen, 27, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 12:19 AM, a deputy responded for a fight at a residence in the 31000 block of Bennett Road in Salisbury. Upon arrival, the deputy met with the resident who advised that he had been spending the evening at the residence with some guests, when one of the guests, Joseph Kutchen, engaged him in an argument that turned physical. During the ensuing physical altercation,
Kutchen allegedly struck the victim in the face with a wooden object. The deputy located Kutchen walking nearby and observed that Kutchen appeared visibly intoxicated. During a pat down, the deputy detected a baggie of marijuana in Kutchen’s pocket which he then recovered.

The deputy placed Kutchen under arrest for the assault and possession of marijuana and transported him to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Kutchen in the Detention Center in lieu of $35,000.00 bond.

Charges: Possession of Marijuana
Assault 2nd Degree

Incident: Possession of Marijuana
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: Ocean Gateway, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Reginald D. Hudson, 52, Upper Marlboro, MD

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 2:55 AM a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office stopped a vehicle on eastbound Ocean Gateway between Hebron and Salisbury for an equipment violation. Upon approach of the driver, the deputy detected an odor of alcohol and observed an open container of beer that had spilled in the passenger compartment. The deputy also noticed what the deputy recognized as a handmade aluminum device fashioned to smoke marijuana in the center console. Upon
examination of the smoking device, the deputy discovered it still contained a quantity of marijuana in it.

Further investigation into the driver, Reginald Hudson, revealed that his privilege to drive had been suspended by the State of Maryland and that the registration of his vehicle was both expired and suspended. Upon examination of the registration plate, it appeared that the validation sticker that showed “12” had been removed from another plate.

The deputy placed Hudson under arrest and transported him to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner released Hudson on Personal Recognizance.

Charges: Possession of Marijuana
Driving While Suspended
Driving with Expired Registration
Falsifying Registration Plate

Incident: Disorderly
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: 23000 block of Head of Creek Road, Quantico, MD
Suspect: Joseph J. Dorvil, 29, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 7:57 AM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a suspicious person inside a church in the 23000 block of Head of Creek Road in Quantico at the request of the church staff. Church staff became concerned when the subject had entered the building while refusing to speak to the church staff. Upon the arrival of the deputy, the subject was located in a room without any lights on and refused to comply with any instructions from the deputy. As the deputy approached, the subject increased his agitation and began jumping up and down.

The subject, identified as Joseph Dorvil of Salisbury, was placed under arrest and transported to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner.

After an initial appearance, the Commissioner released Dorvil on Personal Recognizance.

Charges: Disturbance of the Peace
Hindering and Obstructing

Incident: Child Neglect
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: 500 block of S. Main Street, Hebron, MD
Suspect: Daaryn C. Sellers, 19, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 10:58 PM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation into an incident of possible Child Neglect. Investigation revealed that Daaryn Sellers arrived at a residence in the 500 block of S. Main Street in Hebron with an infant. This address was the location of the parents of the mother of the infant. Sellers knocked on the door and informed the
subjects there that he was leaving the infant there and then left the infant on the front stoop in a car seat.

The subjects there took the infant in and notified the Sheriff’s Office. After an investigation the deputy located Sellers and placed him under arrest for Child Neglect. Sellers was transported to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Sellers in the Detention Center in lieu of $15,000.00 bond.

Charges: Child Neglect
Desertion of a Minor Child

Incident: DUI / Possession of Marijuana
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: Elizabeth Street, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Bryan A. Batton, 46, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 9:57 PM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office stopped a vehicle operated by Bryan Batton after the deputy observed Batton driving the wrong way on a one way street. Upon making contact with Batton, the deputy detected an odor of alcohol emanating from the vehicle. Due to the suspicion of DUI, the deputy conducted field sobriety testing which confirmed that Batton was under the influence of alcohol.

The deputy also discovered that Batton had a marijuana smoking device and marijuana in his pants pocket.

During processing, Batton refused to take a breath test. The deputy transported Batton to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner released Batton on Personal Recognizance.

Charges: Possession of Marijuana
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol

Incident: Theft of Motor Vehicle
Date of Incident: 12 February 2012
Location: 1600 block of Waconia Drive, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Quincy S. Lake, 18, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 12 February 2012 at 3:59 AM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office was sent to a residence in the 1600 block of Waconia Drive in Salisbury for the report of a stolen vehicle.

Upon arrival it was discovered that Quincy Lake took his aunt’s vehicle without her permission to go into town. The deputy also learned that Lake does not have a driver’s license.

The deputy soon located both lake and the vehicle and placed Lake under arrest. The deputy transported Lake to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Lake in the Detention Center in lieu of $20,000.00 bond.
Charges: Theft of Motor Vehicle.

Incident: Warrant Arrest
Date of Incident: 11 February 2012
Location: 28000 block of Old Quantico Road, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Jamar Ashon Goins, 27, Delmar, DE

Narrative: On 11 February 2012 at 1:00 PM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence in the 28000 block of Old Quantico Road for the purpose of locating Jamar Goins who was being sought on an arrest warrant for First Degree Assault by the Delmar Police. The deputy located Goins and took him into custody.

The deputy transported Goins to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Goins in the Detention Center in lieu of $50,000.00 bond.

Charges: Assault 1st Degree
Reckless Endangerment

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY INTRODUCES THE MARYLAND TRANSPORTATION FINANCING AND INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT ACT OF 2012

Legislation would support an estimated 7,500 new jobs, includes “braking mechanism” for consumers and stronger protections for the Transportation Trust Fund

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Martin O’Malley officially submitted to the General Assembly the Maryland Transportation Financing and Infrastructure Investment Act of 2012, a bill that seeks to address the State’s transportation infrastructure needs.

“To create jobs, a modern economy requires modern investments. This legislation will allow us to support 7,500 new jobs building needed roads, bridges, and public transit throughout our State,” said Governor O’Malley. “Maryland has some of the worst traffic in America, and with a growing population and aging infrastructure, we must address these needs today, so our children are not left with a failing transportation system tomorrow. If we are going to protect our recent progress and move our State forward, we have to be honest about the choices we face, and though it is a difficult choice to make, no one will do this for us, except for us.”

This bill works in conjunction with the Administration’s proposed FY 2013 budget, which supports 52,000 jobs alone in the capital budget—focusing on a balanced approach of reductions, revenues and investment to create jobs, innovate and rebuild Maryland’s infrastructure.

The proposed legislation phases in a six percent sales tax on motor fuel at two percent each year for three years that will generate an additional $613 million in revenue to address Maryland’s urgent transportation infrastructure needs and support an estimated 7,500 jobs for Maryland families. The sales tax would be applied to the retail price of motor fuel minus any federal and state taxes. An average retail price of motor fuel will be calculated by the Comptroller's Office every six months based on the average of the prior six months of actual prices of regular unleaded gasoline.

The Governor’s legislation includes a “braking mechanism” that will temporarily cease the phasing of the tax for consumers in the event of a dramatic spike in the price of gasoline. If the price of gasoline in year one were to increase by more than 15 percent over the prior year, the rate in year two would remain at 2 percent. This test will be calculated in each subsequent year until the full rate of 6 percent can be applied.

Over the course of these recessionary times, local revenue funds have been reduced; this legislation restores transportation aid to local governments. When fully-phased in and combined with Highway User Revenues, the revenue generated from the application of the sales tax will restore both municipalities and Baltimore City to approximately 71 percent of their 2008 funding levels and will restore the Counties to nearly half (42 percent) of their 2008 funding level.

The bill also contains stronger protections for the Transportation Trust Fund, including automatic repayment of transfers from the Fund; using the Treasurer’s guidance on the potential impact of the State’s credit rating before transfers occur; and a repayment plan with specific payback provisions provided for in the bill if there is an emergency.

In accordance with the recommendation of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation Funding, the bill also proposes the Regional Transit Financing Authority Study, which creates a workgroup to study and make recommendations on regional transit financing authorities to bring in additional funding to support major transit projects. Additionally, the proposal includes a two-dollar increase in the registration surcharge for the Maryland Emergency Medical Systems Operations Fund to support first responders and emergency medical services in the State.

The Governor added, “These challenges have no easy solutions but we do have the power to make better decisions today, decisions that in the long term will actually cost us less. But we can’t keep kicking the can down the road.”

To see the cost of putting off tomorrow what we can do today for Maryland’s infrastructure, click here.

Pictures From A Greek Soup Kitchen

While we mock and ridicule the corrupt and often times purposefully obtuse Greek politicians, we often ignore the human cost in the equation (and so does the rest of the world). Unfortunately this is becoming an ever greater issue for a country that is rapidly devolving to sub-3rd world status. Because while we have previously discussed the miserable conditions for a country where ever more people are sliding out of the middle class and into poverty status [5], in reality it is far worse. Spiegel has profiled [6]the new Misery in Athens where "aid workers and soup kitchens in Athens are struggling to provide for the city's "new poor." Since the economic crisis has taken hold, poverty has taken hold among Greece's middle class. And suicide rates have nearly doubled." Just like in the US, those in misery are growing exponentially, but the last thing anyone needs is a reminder of their existence. Yet perhaps they should, because when the Bastille moment hits, the spark to overthrow tyranny, especially that masking under the guise of democracy, will come precisely from the slums of the impoverished and disenfranchised, from those who have nothing left to lose. In Greece, with 28% of the population living "at risk of poverty or social exclusion" this moment may arrive any second.

Spiegel's report from an Athens soup kitchen must be read by all who think things like these no longer exist in modern EU countries:

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Close Coordination With White House And News Organizations

David Brock was smoking a cigarette on the roof of his Washington, D.C. office one day in the late fall of 2010 when his assistant and two bodyguards suddenly appeared and whisked him and his colleague Eric Burns down the stairs.

Brock, the head of the liberal nonprofit Media Matters for America, had told friends and co-workers that he feared he was in imminent danger from right-wing assassins and needed a security team to keep him safe.

The threat he faced while smoking on his roof? “Snipers,” a former co-worker recalled.

“He had more security than a Third World dictator,” one employee said, explaining that Brock’s bodyguards would rarely leave his side, even accompanying him to his home in an affluent Washington neighborhood each night where they “stood post” to protect him. “What movement leader has a detail?” asked someone who saw it.

Extensive interviews with a number of Brock’s current and former colleagues at Media Matters, as well as with leaders from across the spectrum of Democratic politics, reveal an organization roiled by its leader’s volatile and erratic behavior and struggles with mental illness, and an office where Brock’s executive assistant carried a handgun to public events in order to defend his boss from unseen threats.

Yet those same interviews, as well as a detailed organizational planning memo obtained by The Daily Caller, also suggest that Media Matters has to a great extent achieved its central goal of influencing the national media.

Founded by Brock in 2004 as a liberal counterweight to “conservative misinformation” in the press, Media Matters has in less than a decade become a powerful player in Democratic politics.

The group operates in regular coordination with the highest levels of the Obama White House, as well as with members of Congress and progressive groups around the country. Brock, who collected over $250,000 in salary from Media Matters in 2010, has himself become a major fundraiser on the left. According to an internal memo obtained by TheDC, Media Matters intends to spend nearly $20 million in 2012 to influence news coverage.

Keep reading..

Media Matters-- The Rev. Wright Of 2012 For Obama

Liberal Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz says Media Matters could become the Rev. Jeremiah Wright of 2012 for the Obama campaign if the White House and the Democratic Party don’t clearly distance themselves from the organization.

“Well, I think if swing voters in the pro-Israel community had any idea how extreme Media Matters was on issues of Israel and supporters of Israel, they would regard Media Matters as another, you know, Rev. Wright,” Dershowitz told The Daily Caller.

“And for many, many in the pro-Israel community, it would be a game changer.”

Dershowitz went so far as to suggest that Media Matters’s rhetoric on Israel, particularly from Media Matters Action Network senior fellow M.J. Rosenberg, is similar to what one would find on a neo-Nazi website.

“When I started reading their stuff it sounded like the kind of stuff you see on neo-Nazi websites,” Dershowitz said. “Or on Hezbollah-supporter websites. It is so extremist. The thing that shocked me is that anybody regarded it as mainstream.”

Media Matters did not respond to a request by TheDC for comment.

Dershowitz said he is not on Media Matters’s email list and is only aware of the language they use when discussing Israel and Israel’s supporters because of emails sent to him from what he identifies as a neo-Nazi website, ReportersNotebook.

“You know where I get their stuff? I read their stuff mostly on a neo-Nazi website that sends it to me,” he explained. “Somehow I am on their mailing list. I am not on Media Matters’s mailing list. But I tend to read Media Matters articles when they’re sent to me by a neo-Nazi website.” (RELATED: Read the ‘Inside Media Matters’ investigative series)

The man behind ReportersNotebook, Michael Santomauro, denied that his email or blog is neo-Nazi in orientation, though he admits to questioning the narrative of the Holocaust and says he believes that Israel is a fascist state.

“The Obama administration cannot have Media Matters and me or people who look to me for advice,” Dershowitz told TheDC. “We cannot be in the same tent. The tent is not big enough to include us.”

When informed of TheDC’s report that the White House is in regular contact with Media Matters, Dershowitz said that if true it had to stop.

Read more

Permanent Recess-- The AWOL Democrat Senate

The Senate often goes into recess. This year it’s going a step further. It’s going into hibernation.

Not turn out the lights, lock the doors, and leave town hibernation. But rather than go about its normal business—such as taking up more than two dozen bills approved by the House and awaiting Senate action—the upper chamber will limit itself to voting on a few items deemed helpful to President Obama’s reelection. These measures, mainly bits and pieces of Obama’s “jobs bill,” are not expected to pass. If they did, that would screw up the plan devised by Democrats.

Their strategy is for the Senate, after extending the payroll tax, to reject or ignore everything else and become part of a “do-nothing Congress” that will serve as the chief villain in the president’s campaign. Since the Republican-controlled House has been a graveyard for Obama’s agenda, it already fits the bill as a do-nothing institution.

But Democrats are in charge of the Senate, a problem for the “do-nothing” campaign. How could Republicans be solely to blame for obstructing Obama if they control only one chamber of Congress?

Now we know the answer. Democrats will pretend Republicans actually run the Senate, too.

More here

Missing Dog: UPDATE

Hi Joe,

Our dog went missing Monday night in Salisbury and still hasn't returned. We're hoping someone may have seen him. His name is Hank and he's an 8 month old bluetick beagle. He was wearing a black collar and is very friendly. He went missing from the Nassawango Church Road area in Salisbury.

If anyone has seen him or may have taken him in we can be reached at
Thanks so much.

Quinnipiac Poll: Ohioans Want Right-to-Work Law

Ohio voters who sided with unions in a battle over collective bargaining rights last November have now turned against them over right-to-work legislation, a poll published Tuesday showed.

The Quinnipiac University survey showed a 14 percentage point margin in favor of a ban on forcing workers to join a union in the famously blue-collar state.

Ohioans polled showed 54 percent support passing right-to-work legislation while 40 percent were opposed. In November a state Senate bill, known as SB 5, which would have curbed union bargaining rights among public-sector workers was defeated, 61 percent to 39 percent.

“Given the assumption that the SB 5 referendum was a demonstration of union strength in Ohio, the 54–40 percent support for making Ohio a right-to-work state does make one take notice,” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the university’s polling institute.

“In the referendum, Independent voters, who are generally the key to Ohio elections, voted with the pro-union folks to repeal the law many viewed as an effort to handicap unions,” added Brown.

“The data indicates that many of those same Independents who stood up for unions this past November are standing up to unions by backing right-to-work legislation.”

Read more

Today's Fill In The Blank 2-15-12

If my spouse ever found out I _________ they'd be really upset.

Federal Reserve And Big Banks Are Going To Crush The Dollar … And American Savers

The Fed’s EXPLICIT Goal Is to Devalue the Dollar by 33% … and NEGATIVE Yield Bonds Are Coming

The Federal Reserve’s explicit goal is to devalue the dollar by 33%.

As Forbes’ Charles Kadlec notes:
The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) has made it official: After its latest two day meeting, it announced its goal to devalue the dollar by 33% over the next 20 years. The debauch of the dollar will be even greater if the Fed exceeds its goal of a 2 percent per year increase in the price level.
***
The Fed has announced a course of action that will steal — there is no better word for it — nearly 10 percent of the value of American’s hard earned savings over the next 4 years.

While that is stunning, it is actually par for the course for the Fed:

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The Cost Of Obama

President Obama’s fourth budget has now been released, which allows for a relatively full accounting of deficit spending during his four years in office. The picture isn’t pretty, but it is revealing.

According to the White House’s own figures (see table S-1 here for 2011 to 2013, and table S-1 here for 2010), the actual or projected deficit tallies for the four years in which Obama has submitted budgets are as follows: $1.293 trillion in 2010, $1.300 trillion in 2011, $1.327 trillion in 2012, and $901 billion in 2013. In addition, Obama is responsible for the estimated $200 billion (the Congressional Budget Office’s figure) that his economic “stimulus” added to the deficit in 2009. Moreover, he shouldn’t get credit for the $149 billion in TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) repayments made in 2010 and 2011 to cover most of the $154 billion in bank loans that remained unpaid at the end of the 2009 fiscal year — loans that count against President Bush’s 2009 deficit tally.

Adding all of this up, deficit spending during Obama’s four years in the White House (based on his own figures) will be an estimated $5.170 trillion — or $5,170,000,000,000.00.

To help put that colossal sum of money into perspective, if you take our deficit spending under Obama and divide it evenly among the roughly 300 million American citizens, that works out to just over $17,000 per person — or about $70,000 for a family of four.

The previous record for most deficit spending during a presidency was set by President George W. Bush (see table 1.3 in the White House’s Historic Tables). During Bush’s 8-year administration, total deficit spending was $3.402 trillion. That’s a truly extraordinary and reckless sum. It’s also $1.768 trillion less than deficit spending in just four years under Obama. Per year, deficits under Bush averaged $425 billion. Per year, deficits under Obama (according to his own numbers) will average $1.293 trillion — or more than three times as much.

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A Modest Proposal To Update The US Bill Of Rights To 2012 NDAA ‘Law’

Credit to the incisive Video Rebel – home here; my contribution is adding a few links and minor edits. Of course, Occupy’s endgame is not to surrender the US Constitution, but to demand arrests of the criminal 1% attempting to destroy it. When education like Video Rebel’s causes critical mass among the 99% to recognize the 1%’s “laws,” wars, and economic looting for the criminal acts they are, this “emperor has no clothes” transformation will stop the criminality and open the door for policy that benefits 100% of Earth’s inhabitants.

The Bill of Rights can only legally be changed through an amendment or a Treaty ratified by the United States Senate. The Supreme Court can interpret the Bill of Rights to make it apply to new technologies such as, television and the Internet, but it cannot amend the Bill of Rights.

By NDAA, the First Amendment has unlawfully been revised to eliminate free speech, freedom of assembly and the right to petition the government for redress of grievances. The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Amendments were similarly revised to allow search and seizure without probable cause and to allow torture and indefinite detention without trial.

The recent announcement of the acquisition of 30,000 drones to patrol the American skies (here, here, here) will require major revisions to several amendments as the majority of these drones will be armed. At first, they will be only be armed with shotgun tasers which can be lethal but could quickly be replaced with shotguns, machine guns and missiles. Tasers kill two people every week (here, here), so they already violate the right to a trial and the prohibition of both torture and cruel and unusual punishment. But there is another problem presented by the use of drones in law enforcement.

US laws must be revised to give drones and robots the same protection as the police have in cases of armed resistance. A human policeman has the right to defend himself from a violent assault. This includes deadly force. But what of a drone? Suppose a drone has issued a verbal order to disperse to an “unlawful” assembly (compare to 1st Amendment content and context).

Someone in the crowd responds by shooting at the drone. Another drone returns fire and kills the man for resisting an armed robotic agent. The constitutional problem is that the drone is not currently granted the same right to life as a human. This must be revised so drones have the right to use lethal force to protect themselves from the citizenry.

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Salisbury City Council Meeting 2-13-12

PAC14 provided a bird’s eye seat for Monday night’s city council meeting. Now you can view the recorded meetings on YouTube from the PAC14 site. Several things about the city’s towing ordinance became a little scratch that, a lot more clear.

First, the law written by outgoing city attorney Paul Wilber for Mitchell and her self-appointed “work group” was deemed unenforceable and had to be changed almost immediately, (there was a special meeting a week ago for 1st reading of the changes and second reading at the meeting this past Monday night). Watch and listen to the comments by the new city attorney and Terry Cohen about that.

Then, Debbie Campbell asks for an amendment to the fee structure. Anyone who has been paying attention to this issue has heard victims of some of the really bad tow companies tell their horror stories to the council. You probably also heard the “administrative fee” being removed once before. Campbell questions the $30 administrative fee and asks her council colleagues to support removing it from the fee schedule. That’s when the chaos breaks out. An owner of a Fruitland towing company launches into Campbell. You really have to see this to believe it.

Then there is more discussion. Mitchell shills for the towing industry and makes it clear that she is more worried about their pocketbooks than those of consumers.

Here’s the thing that you need to understand. The council isn’t talking about regulating the prices for all towing business, just the towing that is the result of the police calling a tow truck.

Here’s how it works. The city has a list that a tow truck company can sign up for voluntarily they have to be licensed by the city and agree to the City’s towing policies, (including fees set by the City that apply only to police tows) this is intended to prevent price gouging and other possible consumer abuses. The police department uses these companies exclusively, on a rotating basis. If you are in an accident, if your car has to be towed by the police for being parked where it shouldn’t be in a snow emergency, etc., the police call the next company on the list and that’s who tows your car. As Campbell said, it is pretty much a “captive market.”

Over the past year or so we have heard horror story after horror story from people who have been ripped off by a couple of unscrupulous companies on the city’s rotation list. Comments, anyone?

Folks, the City Police called for a tow about 350 times last year, that’s less than one tow a day. If 24 tow companies are on the list, then that would be about 15 tows/company/year.

Back to the meeting, insults are launched at Campbell by tow company representatives. This was the second reading of an ordinance. For those council members who have been sleeping in class (Shields and Mitchell) hello, nothing is final with a law until it is passed TWICE and signed. Campbell had every right, and I would say even a responsibility, to make an amendment. The council then had the right to vote it up or down.

Campbell votes yes on the amendment and the other 4 members vote no.

After the amendment about the $30 fails the ordinance with the original fee schedule passes unanimously.

Shields starts to go on about how everyone should have been asked to participate when the legislation was first considered way back when. Hello, Shanie. I was at that meeting. The towing guys were there too. Campbell asked you and the other council members to vote to suspend part of the rules of order so that they could comment on what was being discussed. YOU, Louise and Gary voted no! Shanie, do the math. Your vote is what kept them from being able to comment at the very first meeting.

Whether you agree with Campbell’s position or not, the way that she was treated was disgraceful. She showed courage and grace under fire. Folks, believe me, it really is worth watching. If you’ve ever had a bad experience with a tow company, Campbell will be your hero.

Thanks to Campbell’s tenacity and the support of at least a majority of the council, the companies towing for the city will now be required to accept credit cards and bank checks. Some used to force customers to pay with cash only. At least now if you think that you have been treated unfairly you can dispute it with your credit card company. I bet we get some comments from victims on this one.

Hurray for the new city attorney who found and fixed the problem before the city got sued and, in just a couple of weeks? Maybe there is hope for the city.

Watch the whole meeting. Ireton give a great grand finale when he has one of the fits that we’ve come to expect. Some will say that Cohen should have shut things down, but there is something to be said for a meeting where the public can speak and the gavel isn’t abused. Lord knows how often even I have been subjected to that.

New Posts to fall below.

Lawmakers Concerned About USPS Getting Out Of The Red

Lawmakers are renewing scrutiny on the Postal Service after its $3.3 billion loss for the first quarter this year. Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) says he's "deeply concerned" about the agency's plan to climb out of the red. He's the latest lawmaker to weigh in on the Postal Service's plan to close facilities. He says that would make it "virtually impossible" to deliver first-class mail within three days in rural America. President Barack Obama renewed a call for ending Saturday mail service in his budget proposal yesterday.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Catholic Bishop Warns Pelosi, Biden, Sebelius, Kerry, McCaskill… Judgment Day Is Coming

Bishop Daniel Jenky of Peoria, Ill. has asked parishes, schools, hospitals and religious houses to insert the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel into the intercessions at Sunday Mass to pray for Catholics’ freedom. (TLDM)

“I strongly urge you not to be intimidated by extremist politicians or the malice of the cultural secularists arrayed against us.”-Bishop Daniel Jenky

Bishop Daniel Jenky of Peoria, Illinois warned Catholic democrats that one day they will indeed have to meet their Creator and will have to give account for their irresponsible acts before God.The Catholic News Agency reported:

Politicians who consider themselves Catholic but collaborate in “the assault against their faith” should remember they will one day have to give account for their acts before God, Bishop Daniel Jenky of Peoria, Illinois said Feb 10.

“There is a last judgment. There is a particular judgment. May they change their minds and may God have mercy on them,” he told CNA during his visit to Rome.

When asked specifically about recent actions of Democratic Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Bishop Jenky replied “I am utterly scandalized.”

“The Lord once said ‘if you deny me at the end, I will deny you,’ this from our most merciful, good Savior. And so if it is a choice between Jesus Christ and political power or getting favorable editorials in leftist papers, well, that’s simply not a choice.”

Both Sebelius and Rep. Pelosi have been at the forefront of attempts to force Catholic institutions to cover contraception, sterilizations and abortifacients as part of their staff’s health insurance plans.

Bishop Jenky said there are too many Catholic politicians in the U.S. who “like to wear green sweaters on St. Patrick’s Day and march” or “have their pictures taken with the hierarchy” or “have conspicuous crosses on their forehead with ashes” but who then “not only do not live their faith they collaborate in the assault against their faith.”

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Another Comment Worthy Of A Post

Well Joe I finally agree with you. I am sick and tired of Gays and Afro Americans crying the blues. Well before I go any further lets make one thing clear. Those of you comparing Blacks and Whites getting married to this Gay rights bill are just plain fking crazy. No one cares about a man and women getting married anymore of any race. Those days are long gone but to say we will all accept it later. You my friend are in denial because as you stated you child is gay.

I have friends that I hold near to my heart that have "Chosen" the gay life style. They know I do not and will not support this ever. Whats next I want to marry a five year old. Why cant I I know society does not like adults having sex with kids. Well in time we will get used to it. BULLSHIT. In some countries you would be put to death for same sex anything. That also goes for pedophiles. It is without a doubt a deviant behavior that a bunch of liberal live and let live til it affects me cry babies have endorsed.

No the problem is we have all become affraid of offending someone or hurting feelings. This country is in the crapper people. The moral fabric is tattered. We as a people have lost the will to be the greatest country on earth. We have broken all the rules. We are affraid to admitt that just maybe we went too far with some freedoms.

When I see eighteen year old women with seven children and no father to care for them. He is in jail or just does not care. A young women who chooses not to take a small pill to prevent this because she knows I work an eighty hour work week so she can go to the "Club" smoke some weed and kick out a couple more kids with felons.

I am not in anyway targeting the African Americanus. Just the ones with over six kids with no job or a babies daddy. See I am tolerant. I have become weak I should not tolerate anyone living off of my hard earned dollars. I have been effected by the spin.

This country is on the verge of financial ruin the politicians want you deabting gay marriege. They do not want your eyes on them. They have failed America. A great country will fall without a single shot ever being fired on American soil. Greed, Glutony, Deviance, Fear, and Extreme Tolerance will bring us to our knees.

People dont have food to eat and the rainbow coalition spent twenty million dollars so that gays can call eachother husband and wife.

REALLY I MEAN REALLY. I have had enough of this liberal rhetoric crammed down my throat.

God Bless America. We sure as hell need it.

Its time for a social awakening.

The Wicomican

Today's Survey Question 2-15-12

Do you believe in coincidences?