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Monday, June 04, 2012

Pirates Making Hundreds of Millions in Ransoms, as Attacks Intensify off Somali Coast

While much of the world's economy is in the doldrums, business is booming for Somalia's pirates, whose attacks on commercial ships sailing Africa's east coast are more frequent, violent and lucrative than ever.

Pirates took in an estimated $160 million in ransoms last year, and one study predicts the number will climb to $400 million by 2015, as the high seas thieves continue their brazen reign on the Indian Ocean. Efforts by shipping companies to beef up security, and by the European Union, which has mounted airstrikes on pirate ships, have so far been met with stepped-up attacks. Chillingly, pirates are now chopping off the limbs of captives in extreme cases when the airdrop of cash isn't made quickly enough to suit them.

"It's an established, structured model, where you have Somalis who are leading and financing operations and then you have pirates who actually go out to sea and conduct the activity," Brian Green, chief of the counter-piracy branch of the Office of Naval Intelligence, told FoxNews.com of the piracy industry. "They are, more or less, foot soldiers. They find targets of opportunity, attack them with the goal of hijacking and bringing that vessel back to Somalia."

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Hypocrisy Alert: Investigation Reveals AFL-CIO, SEIU in Bed with JP Morgan Chase

If union members are upset that the millions union bosses have dumped into defeating Gov. Walker in tomorrow’s recall election appear not to be working, they may be furious when they learn the details of a new investigation by the Government Accountability Institute. 





Here are a few of the highlights:
Despite the nearly 200 demonstrations against JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and the other big banks, the AFL-CIO and SEIU are in bed with JP Morgan Chase—big time.  Through something called the “Union Plus Mortgage Program,” the AFL-CIO and SEIU provide their members over 80,000 home mortgage loans totaling a whopping $15.2 billion.  And who have the unions relied upon for 12 years and running to offer these home loans?  You guessed it, JP Morgan Chase, the very bank the big union bosses direct their members to rail against.



To hear the heated rhetoric against Chase coming out of the big unions, the average union member would have no way of guessing that their union is in business with the big bank.  “Chase’s stranglehold on the economy is everywhere,” says President of SEIU-USWW Mike Garcia.  “They’ve kicked California families out of their homes.” To rectify the injustice of it all, SEIU members are even directed to a webpage titled “Ask Jamie Dimon For a Meeting.” As the SEIU’s website declares:  “Chase hurts everybody. They’re making a profit by lending taxpayers their own money…JP Morgan Chase is manipulating government budget processes and charging local and state governments high interest rates.”   Odd words for unions who are in cahoots with JP Morgan Chase. 

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Mayor Jim Ireton So Drunk He Can't Remember He Called



It was a beautiful evening Saturday night when we gathered with several friends at our home to enjoy a bon fire. As we were enjoying our evening my cell phone started ringing. It was 11:38 PM and wouldn't you know it, it was Mayor Jim Ireton. I was somewhat surprised because of the hour but I opened the phone after showing my Wife who was actually calling.

Mayor Jim Ireton was clearly drunk and wanted to tell me that he knew I had this election won. He knew that Salisbury News was much bigger than the Daily Times and that too many people in Salisbury are already saying Joe Albero was going to win this election.

The Mayor went on to tell me that we had a lot of the same views for Salisbury but before he stepped down and showed his support for me he wanted to know if I'd be interested in meeting with him Sunday at noon at his Office. He went on to say that he knows he can't beat me and he's done fighting. He mentioned something about how the people love me and support me and he knew I'd make a great Mayor because I care.

I agreed that I would meet with the Mayor on Sunday. The next morning I headed up to the GOB and when I arrived at 11:50 AM the Mayor's vehicle was not there. I called him on the same number he called me from, (his cell phone) and there was no answer. I then sent him a text message saying I was at the GOB waiting for him. Again, no reply.

I waited until 12:10 PM before I called him again, this time leaving a message on his phone stating I had waited long enough and since he hadn't responded to any of my attempts to contact him I didn't appreciate my taking family time to come meet with him and his not responding. I then stated I felt he owed me a reply call. I never got one.

At that point, since Jim was so down on the phone Saturday night I called one Council Member as I grew even more concerned he hadn't replied. After explaining the call Saturday night and his not responding, they agreed someone needed to go check up on the Mayor.

It turns out Chief Duncan made contact with Mayor Ireton and explained my concerns. The Mayor stated he had no clue what she was talking about, he hadn't spoken with me last night. The Chief responded asking if I'd be willing to turn over my phone records.

When I originally answered the phone Saturday night I put the phone up to my Wife's ear so she could tell it was Mayor Ireton. He sounded pretty trashed and she confirmed right away it was him. I waited around in Salisbury at my Office to get some kind of reply to make sure the Mayor was OK so when I left Salisbury I drove directly to the Police Department and showed staff my cell phone proving the Mayor did in fact call me very late Saturday night and they were to relay that information to the Chief.

I think we can all agree, when someone drinks that much alcohol it can become a truth serum. My conversation with the Mayor made it blatantly obvious I had a larger following, (according to his own words) than the Daily Times, people he was running into were stating I was going to win this election and between the two of us, he wasn't going to fight me in a re election bid for Mayor. The Mayor had exposed his full deck of cards.

The scariest part of all of this is the fact that the Mayor does not recall, (so he says) ever making the phone call. If that's the case he might want to have someone hide his cell phone so he's not able to make anymore drunken phone calls. He had every opportunity today to pick up the phone and call me and simply say, why are you calling me and texting me. At that point he could have told ME that he didn't make the call Saturday night. That didn't happen because he knew he screwed up. He was sleeping off a hard night of drinking and when the Chief of Police arrived he claimed he wanted an investigation of some sort into WHO made that late night phone call. HELLLOOOOO! Are we talking about a black out here? I don't thinks so.

Jim has lost the support of most of his former friends. The Daily Times has to be sick of his temper tantrums, (as are all of us) he's admitted to me personally he can no longer afford to financially stick with being Mayor. He has personally seen my Maryland Driver's License, yet claimed last week that I wasn't a resident of Salisbury. The guy is done as Mayor. You know it, I know it and after Saturday nights phone call, even he knows it.

Vietnam Opens 3 New Sites for War Remains Search

The Vietnamese government has announced it will open three previously restricted sites for excavation by the U.S. to search for troop remains from the war.
The announcement from Vietnam Minister of Defense Phung Quang Thanh comes as U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and his Vietnamese counterpart participated in a first-of-its-kind joint exchange of artifacts from the war in Hanoi.
A Department of Defense spokesman said in a statement the department believes Joint Prisoners of War, Missing in Action Accounting Command (JPAC) research teams will greatly benefit from access to the new sites in their search for the approximately 1,200 U.S. service members still missing in Vietnam.

Detectives Make Arrest In Shooting Incident

Location:
Caribbean Delight Restaurant, 1030 South Market Street, Wilmington, DE

Date of Occurrence:
Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 9:20 p.m.

Victims:
25 year old Wilmington woman
33 year old New Castle man

Defendant, Charges, and Bail Information:
Oneil A. Rose, 40, Wilmington, DE ( a mug shot photograph is not available at this time)
Attempted Murder 1st Degree
Assault 1st Degree
Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony (2 counts)
Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited

Arraigned at JP Court 20 and then committed to the Howard Young Correctional Institution for lack of $285,000.00 cash bail.

Resume:
Wilmington- Delaware State Police detectives have arrested a Wilmington man in connection with the shooting of a female victim in the parking lot of a local restaurant.

On Sunday, June 3, 2012 detectives arrested Oneil A. Rose, 40, of Wilmington and charged him with one count each of attempted murder 1st degree, assault 2nd degree, possession of a firearm by a person prohibited, and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. He was then arraigned at JP Court 20 and committed to the Department of Corrections for lack of bail.

During their investigation into the shooting which occurred in the parking lot of the Caribbean Delight Restaurant located in the 1000 block of South Market Street in Wilmington, detectives learned that Oneil Rose produced a handgun and confronted a 33 year old New Castle male who he had been having an ongoing dispute with. The male victim then began to run around a vehicle which was parked in the parking lot in an attempt to flee from Rose. However, upon reaching the rear of the vehicle, Rose pointed the gun at the victim at which time the victim grabbed Rose’s hand. It was at this point that Rose fired a single shot from the gun striking a 25 year old Wilmington, DE woman who was standing outside of the vehicle. The male victim and Oneil Rose both fled the area in separate vehicles, however, the victim returned a short time later. The female victim was transported to a local hospital by friends and then later transferred to the Christiana Hospital Trauma Center where she was admitted in stable condition.

After further investigation, detectives were able to locate Oneil Rose in his vehicle in the area of DE Rt. 273 and US Rt. 13 in New Castle. He was taken into custody by members of the Delaware State Police Special Operations Response Team (S.O.R.T) without incident.

Verizon Has Chance To Take Away Super-Cheap Plan, Doesn't Take It

Based on what you read here, all telecommunications companies are money vacuums that exist solely to find excuses to kick customers off perfectly good plans and extract as much money as possible. Right? Well...maybe not. Stephen doesn't use his phone much, and is perfectly happy buying one $100 prepaid card per year to keep it activated, paying 35 cents per minute to make actual calls. Verizon has had a few opportunities over the years to take this plan away from him, but they never do. And he appreciates it.

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The Single-Mom Catastrophe

The single-mother revolution shouldn't need much introduction. It started in the 1960s when the nation began to sever the historical connection between marriage and childbearing and to turn single motherhood and the fatherless family into a viable, even welcome, arrangement for children and for society. The reasons for the shift were many, including the sexual revolution, a powerful strain of anti-marriage feminism and a "super bug" of American individualism that hit the country in the 1960s and '70s.

In its broad outlines, the story is familiar by now. In 1965, 93% of all American births were to women with marriage licenses. Over the next few decades, the percentage of babies with no father around rose steadily. As of 1970, 11% of births were to unmarried mothers; by 1990, that number had risen to 28%. Today, 41% of all births are to unmarried women. And for mothers under 30, the rate is 53%.

Though other Western countries also concluded that it was OK for the unmarried to have kids, what they had in mind as the substitute for marriage was something similar to it: a stable arrangement in which two partners, cohabiting over the long term, would raise their children together. The embrace of "lone motherhood" — women bringing up kids with no dad around — has been an American specialty.

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US Navy Hopes Stealth Ship Answers a Rising China

A super-stealthy warship that could underpin the U.S. Navy's China strategy will be able to sneak up on coastlines virtually undetected and pound targets with electromagnetic "railguns" right out of a sci-fi movie.

But at more than $3 billion a pop, critics say the new DDG-1000 destroyer sucks away funds that could be better used to bolster a thinly stretched conventional fleet. One outspoken admiral in China has scoffed that all it would take to sink the high-tech American ship is an armada of explosive-laden fishing boats.

With the first of the new ships set to be delivered in 2014, the stealth destroyer is being heavily promoted by the Pentagon as the most advanced destroyer in history _ a silver bullet of stealth. It has been called a perfect fit for what Washington now considers the most strategically important region in the world _ Asia and the Pacific.

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Navy Marks Battle of Midway's 70th Anniversary

Six months after the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan sent four aircraft carriers to the tiny Pacific atoll of Midway to draw out and destroy what remained of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

But this time the U.S. knew about Japan's plans. U.S. cryptologists had cracked Japanese communications codes, giving Fleet Commander Adm. Chester Nimitz notice of where Japan would strike, the day and time of the attack, and what ships the enemy would bring to the fight.

The U.S. was badly outnumbered and its pilots less experienced than Japan's. Even so, it sank four Japanese aircraft carriers the first day of the three-day battle and put Japan on the defensive, greatly diminishing its ability to project air power as it had in the attack on Hawaii.

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IS IT 'HATE' TO EXPOSE ISLAM?

A recent critic has blasted author Joel Richardson as “hateful” and “bigoted” for writing books that suggest the Antichrist will be a Muslim whose empire will arise out of the Middle East.
But is it really “hate” to draw parallels between the Bible’s coming villain and Islam’s expected Mahdi?
Jordan Michael Smith of the left-leaning Salon.com last week penned a column called “Books’ most hateful bestseller,” tearing into Richardson for writing such books as the New York Times bestseller “The Islamic Antichrist: The Shocking Truth About the Nature of the Beast” and the about to be released“Mideast Beast: The Scriptural Case for an Islamic Antichrist.”
“[Richardson's] preachings about loving Muslims while despising Islam make him seem grounded in Christian teachings and compassionate in his beliefs,” Smith writes. “But his virulently bigoted views on Islam make him a dangerous character – and one that has found many adherents on the religious right.”
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Merrill Losses Were Withheld Before Bank of America Deal

Days before Bank of America shareholders approved the bank’s $50 billion purchase of Merrill Lynch in December 2008, top bank executives were advised that losses at the investment firm would most likely hammer the combined companies’ earnings in the years to come. But shareholders were not told about the looming losses, which would prompt a second taxpayer bailout of $20 billion, leaving them instead to rely on rosier projections from the bank that the deal would make money relatively soon after it was completed.

What Bank of America’s top executives, including its chief executive then, Kenneth D. Lewis, knew about Merrill’s vast mortgage losses and when they knew it emerged in court documents filed Sunday evening in a shareholder lawsuit being heard in Federal District Court in Manhattan.
The disclosure, coming to light in private litigation, is likely to reignite concerns that federal regulators and prosecutors have not worked hard enough to hold key executives accountable for their actions during the financial crisis.
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Technology flashback: Atari, Commodore 64, Apples and More

Technology flashback: Atari, Commodore 64, Apples and more

Computer technology has changed quite a bit since the late 1970s. From big and bulky to slim and sleek, how many of these do you remember?

 Slide Show    HERE

War in the White House: attorney general Eric Holder and top Obama adviser David Axelrod 'had to be separated'

War in the White House: attorney general Eric Holder and top Obama adviser David Axelrod 'had to be separated'

Eric Holder, Barack Obama's attorney general and David Axelrod, his top political adviser had to be separated after squaring up during a furious row over attempts to impose White House operatives in the justice department.

Eric Holder, who heads Mr Obama's justice department, is said to have become "incensed" after being accused by David Axelrod of complaining publicly about political interference in his office.

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Pennsylvania Father Abandons 16-Year-Old Daughter Over Bad Math Grade

A Pennsylvania father pleaded guilty to child endangerment for abandoning his teenage daughter at a mall over a bad grade she received at school.       
Tuan Huynh, 47, of Montgomery County, dropped his 16-year-old daughter off near Cheltenham Square Mall and told her she could not come home, Fox affiliate WTXF-TV reported. He told the teenager she no longer met her parents' expectations because she had received a bad grade on a calculus test, according to the station.
Assistant District Attorney Cara McMenamin told the station that the girl wandered around the Cheltenham Mall for hours before a minister finally approached her and called for help.
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Texas Woman Barred From US After Swearing She Is Not American

A Texas woman has been stranded on the Mexican side of the US border for more than three months after making a statement saying she was born in Mexico and was not an American citizen, The Brownsville Herald reported.
Brenda Vazquez said her "false" statement to a US border official at the Brownsville international bridge on Feb. 19 came after she was grilled for seven hours when she attempted to re-enter Texas -- where she says she was born in Weslaco in 1982.
A petition filed in a US federal court on behalf of Vazquez claims she only signed the statement after a US Customs and Border Protection official seized her Texas driver's license and US birth certificate and refused to allow her access to a lawyer until she admitted she was not American, the Herald reported in its Sunday edition.
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GSA Under Even More Scrutiny

More ripples are forming in the General Services Administration financial scandal that began with a Las Vegas conference. Congress is releasing new documents to the press showing that since 2008 the GSA has given more than $1 million in bonuses to employees being investigated for misconduct. That includes about 84 workers who received annual awards of as much as $18,000. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) told the Kansas City Star the GSA has a culture of entitlement that rewards bad judgment. In response, GSA said it was reviewing bonus payouts. Records given to the Washington Post also revealed out-of-control travel expenses charged by 95 Public Buildings Service employees who work from home. Their $750,000 in spending surprised even their regional commissioner Jeff Neely, who was at the heart of that first Las Vegas scandal.

U.S. MISSILES INFECTED WITH CHINESE FAKES

Fake electronic components from China have been discovered in thermal weapons sights delivered to the U.S. Army on mission computers for the Missile Defense Agency’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, missiles and on military aircraft, including several models of helicopters and the P-8A-Poseidon, according to federal investigators.

Suspected electronic parts were found in the Forward Looking InfraRed, or FLIR, Systems being used on the Navy’s SH-60-B. The counterfeit parts were delivered by Raytheon, which alerted the Navy.

The new evidence comes reports that the problem with faked Chinese electronic components being installed in U.S. military systems is far more widespread that originally thought.

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Watergate Documents May Become Public

Secret documents linked to the Watergate scandal may become public soon. The Justice Department said there was no reason to keep many of the judicial records sealed. The agency has responded to a legal request made by a Texas history professor. He wanted to read testimony by the former FBI agent hired to eavesdrop and transcribe the conversations at Democratic National Committee headquarters in 1972. The Justice Department said hundreds of papers could be released. But others, including documents containing personal or grand-jury information or about the content of illegally obtained wiretaps, should be kept sealed.

Facebook Developing Technology to Allow Access to Children Under 13

Facebook is developing technology that would allow children younger than 13 years old to use the social-networking site under parental supervision, a step that could help the company tap a new pool of users for revenue but also inflame privacy concerns.
Mechanisms being tested include connecting children's accounts to their parents' and controls that would allow parents to decide whom their kids can "friend" and what applications they can use, people who have spoken with Facebook executives about the technology said. The under-13 features could enable Facebook and its partners to charge parents for games and other entertainment accessed by their children, the people said.
Facebook currently bans users under 13. But many kids lie about their ages to get accounts, putting the company in an awkward position regarding a federal law that requires sites to obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting personal data from children.
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Unemployment Among New Veterans Shot Up Last Month

Unemployment among new veterans shot up last month, or so it would seem from the numbers. One in eight, or 12.7 percent, post 9-11 veterans are looking for work. That's a 3 percent increase in a month. Veterans Affairs said monthly swings are normal. The good news, officials said, is that unemployment has steadily, if modestly, declined over the past two years. VA said it was continuing to hold job fairs all over the country and its other programs were proving popular. A new program to retrain unemployed vets had 12,000 applicants in the first two weeks.

OCEAN CITY POLICE MOURN THE LOSS OF RETIRED K9 INDY


The Ocean City Police Department is mourning the loss of veteran K9, Indy, who passed away on May 17, 2012. Indy, who retired from the department in September 2009, came to the OCPD from Holland, at which time he became the dedicated and faithful partner to Sgt. Ronnie Townsend.

Indy joined the OCPD in 2004, and spent hundreds of hours training in the Patrol/Narcotics Division. During his time on patrol, Indy assisted in the apprehension of dozens of illegal narcotics. In addition, Indy has had close to 500 deployments over his career. One of the biggest professional accomplishments came when he found a kilo of cocaine in a vehicle. “He loved his job and he loved serving the Ocean City community,” commented Sgt. Townsend. “He was the most loyal, hard working and dedicated partner I could have ever asked for.”

Along with the seizure of drugs, Indy is responsible for an estimated $15,000 in U.S.currency seizures. When Indy was not working the road, he often participated in demonstrations for the Ocean City community. He enjoyed being involved in the Town of Ocean City’s Bonfires on the Beach, National Night Out, the Citizen’s Police Academy, the Mayor’s Open House and the July 4th Jamboree.

Indy’s love for his job and his commitment to his community will be remembered by many, but his love for his family will also not be forgotten. “Indy was a great partner and an even better family pet,” Sgt. Townsend continued. “He will be remembered for his hard work and loyalty to the Ocean City Police Department, but also as a member of my family. He will always be loved by us.”

BEST SENIOR CITIZEN JOKE

A little silver-haired lady calls her neighbor and says, "Please come over here and help me. I have a killer jigsaw puzzle, and I can't figure out how to get started." Her neighbor asks, "What is it supposed to be when it's finished?" The little silver haired lady says, "According to the picture on the box, it's a rooster." Her neighbor decides to go over and help with the puzzle. She lets him in and shows him where she has the puzzle spread all over the table. He studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then turns to her and says, "First of all, no matter what we do, we're not going to be able to assemble these pieces into anything resembling a rooster." He takes her hand and says, "Secondly, I want you to relax. Let's have a nice cup of tea, and then," he said with a deep sigh ............ (scroll down)


























"Let's put all the Corn Flakes back in the box."

WARREN CAUGHT TELLING ANOTHER TALL TALE ABOUT COMPOSITE GRANDMOTHER

On Friday, Breitbart News caught Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren in one of her many tall tales of family lore, forcing her to walk back her September 2011 story about her maternal grandmother, Bethanie (Hannie) Crawford Reed, through whose ancestral line she falsely claims Native American heritage. Today, we’re reporting yet another tall tale Ms. Warren told about her maternal grandmother. We look forward to seeing how Ms. Warren will walk back this most recently discovered tall tale.

As we reported on Friday:
A recently discovered video shows Elizabeth Warren telling another tall tale about her family. The day after she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate, Democrat Elizabeth Warren told the convocation at the University of Massachusetts-Boston: "My grandmother drove a wagon in the land rush to settle territory out west. It was 1889, she was 15 years old…She lived to be 94, to see her youngest grandchild--that's me--graduate from college…". The only problem with this story is that it’s not true.

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WSJ: O'Malley Overlooks Some Holes In His Economic Record

O'Malley Overlooks Some Holes in His Economic Record

Your editorial "O'Malley's Tutorial" (May 23) highlights what has become a national case study for spend-and-tax governing. This comes on the heels of Maryland's latest tax increase on incomes starting at just $100,000 per year. Gov. Martin O'Malley's response (Letters, May 31) doesn't convince.

He ignores the findings of his legislature's own nonpartisan budget analysts that Maryland's income tax burden is the second highest in the nation as a percentage of income. And that was before the latest income tax increase.

Mr. O'Malley touts Maryland's triple-A bond rating but omits mentioning that Moody's has a negative outlook on the rating. The governor and the legislature have sought to use bonds and other borrowing to continue to fund programs that politicians in other states have gutted during the economic downturn.

According to Moody's, Maryland has "high concentrations of federal government employment and federal procurement," and is exposed to the consequences of federal government downsizing and spending cuts. The governor says that he has cut $8 billion from the budget since he took office. A budget that has grown from $29.6 billion to $35.9 billion on Mr. O'Malley's watch does not add up to $8 billion in "cuts."

Just after the income tax hike was enacted, the Labor Department said that Maryland led the nation in job loss. The state's comptroller said Maryland must still create nearly 150,000 additional jobs just to return to pre-recession levels. When you lose corporate headquarters like Black & Decker and Northrop Grumman, you lose a lot of jobs.

The governor's choice to meet these challenges seems clear: rely on government for economic growth—get more, spend more, tax more. But by making that choice, he commits Maryland to a public-sector economy. Successful economic growth depends on the private sector, not the government.

It should come as no surprise that Mr. O'Malley's choice to build bigger government through these failed spend-and-tax government-growth policies pique the interest of the national press.

Kimberly M. Burns

President

Maryland Business for Responsive Government

Obama Adviser Axelrod: Romney Not 'Qualified to Call Himself a Job-Creator’

David Axelrod, a senior adviser to President Obama’s reelection campaign, said Sunday that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney does not have a record of a “job-creator.”
Speaking on CBS’s Face the Nation, Axelrod said the former Massachusetts governor shouldn’t be considered an expert on the economy. Romney’s record in government and in the private sector was not about creating jobs, according to the Obama adviser.
“No one’s arguing whether Mitt Romney’s qualified to be president. What we’re arguing is whether he’s qualified to call himself a job-creator,” Axelrod said. “That’s not what he did in business. That’s not the purpose of his business. And that’s not certainly what he did in Massachusetts, where they had one of the worst economic records in the country.”
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Law Enforcement Torch Run Relay For Special Olympics



The 4 mile run was done moments ago in Salisbury.

Eric Holder And David Axelrod Had To Be Separated From Fighting Each Other After Cabinet Meeting

Eric Holder, who heads Mr Obama's justice department, is said to have become "incensed" after being accused by David Axelrod of complaining publicly about political interference in his office.

"That's bull****," Mr Holder said in a confrontation after a cabinet meeting, according to author Daniel Klaidman. He writes: "The two men stood chest to chest. It was like a school yard fight".

The relatively mild-mannered Mr Axelrod is said to have told the attorney general: "Don't ever, ever accuse me of trying to interfere with the operations of the Justice Department", a taboo in US politics.

In 'Kill or Capture: The War on Terror and the Soul of the Obama Presidency', Klaidman discloses the struggles within Mr Obama's White House at it mounted its controversial campaign against al-Qaeda.

He writes that Mr Holder and Mr Axelrod were separated by Valerie Jarrett, a White House adviser and confidante to Mr Obama. Ms Jarrett "pushed her way between the two men, her sense of decorum disturbed, ordering them to 'take it out of the hallway'," says Klaidman.

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In Walker Recall, Road to White House Runs Through Wisconsin

National Republicans think that if Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker survives his recall election Tuesday, it will be much harder for Mr. Obama to keep the state in the Democratic column in the November election.

If Mr. Obama loses Wisconsin, the GOP says, it changes the entire Electoral College map — and the Democratic incumbent could pretty much kiss a second term goodbye.

The Wisconsin theory is one of many being bandied about now that the general election between Mr. Obama and Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee, is under way.

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THE RULING ELITE SOLVED NOTHING - NOW THE ENDGAME

When the real problems are masked with fake “solutions,” the chickens eventually come home to roost, and we wake up to the reality that the fake “solutions” have only made things much worse.

The reality that the global Status Quo has fixed absolutely nothing in four years is finally coming to roost in the global economy.Though there is an endless array of complexity to snare the unwary, the source of instability is both visible and easily understood: too much debt that will never be paid back. Making matters much worse, much of the money that was borrowed–by sovereign governments, local governments, households and private enterprises–was squandered on consumption or malinvestments, and so there are precious few assets or collateral underlying the debt.

Even when there is an asset–for example, a vacant house in a vacant development in Spain, or a Greek bond–the market value is considerably lower than the purchase price.

The reality is that trillions of dollars, euros, yen and renminbi in phantom wealth will disappear when the losses that have already taken place are finally recognized.Everyone in the world with exposure to the global economy will become poorer in terms of abundant money floating around buying goods and services as credit dries up and deleveraging wipes out trillions of dollars, euros, yen and renminbi of phantom wealth.

Deleveraging is the process of the market discovering the true value of the asset underlying the debt and the difference between the debt and the proceeds of the asset sale being absorbed as a loss.If an entity needs to liquidate liabilities and/or raise cash to pay bills and interest, then assets will have to be sold. If the market value is less than the debt, then a loss must be booked. If a house carrying a $200,000 mortgage is sold for $100,000, the lender has to absorb a $100,000 loss.

Credit will dry up for a number of reasons, but the basic dynamic is that lenders no longer have enough collateral to generate new loans (except for those guaranteed by Central States) and in a world where assets are being sold to raise cash to stay solvent (the mighty engines of deleveraging), then prudent lenders are wary of loaning money to purchase assets that are declining in market value.

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Weak May Jobs Report Spurs GOP Concerns Over New Fed Stimulus

The disappointing May jobs report has set off a fresh round of speculation – and concern among Republicans – about whether the Federal Reserve will move to boost the economy.
Friday’s employment report, which found the economy added just 69,000 jobs - less than half of expectations – suggested an already tenuous economic recovery may have lost steam.
With the Fed officially charged with maximizing employment and controlling inflation, those bleak numbers have analysts and lawmakers wondering if the central bank will act to jolt the economy.
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BAD TO THE BONE

ANTI-WALKER GROUP INTIMIDATES VOTERS WITH MAILER

The Greater Wisconsin Political Fund is a 527 political organization, but it is stridently anti-Scott Walker and over the past couple of days Wisconsin residents have been receiving very disturbing mailings that not only attempt to shame you and your neighbors into voting, but also threaten to publicly shame you if you don’t vote in the June 5 recall election.

  Wisconsin blogger Ann Althouse received this, what she called "the most disgusting thing I have ever received in the mail":  

Continue  HERE

POSSIBLY THE BEST CARTOON OF THIS CENTURY

Today's Fill In The Blank 6-4-12

The last donation I made was to ______.

What A Wonderful World With David Attenborough

Today's Advertiser Of The Day 6-4-12

Soldiers Could Go Reptilian With New Camo

This month, soldiers will begin testing a camouflage pattern that looks more like reptile scales than terrain as part of the field-trial portion of the Army’s camouflage improvement effort.

The start of the field evaluation comes five months after Army uniform officials announced the finalists that had emerged from the service’s exhaustive Phase IV Camouflage Improvement effort. A handful of vendors were awarded contracts to make camouflage-patterned material for uniforms and equipment. Ultimately, the winner’s pattern could end up replacing the Army’s embattled Universal Camouflage Pattern, known as UCP, which was adopted in 2004.

Last fall, Army uniform officials completed tests that involved 900 soldiers taking a digital picture survey of camouflage patterns under consideration. The computerized survey had soldiers look at dozens of camouflage patterns and then rate their concealment performance.

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Missing Dogs

Reward
Answer to polly and anna
If found call
443-880-8936

FARMER PANIC! CROPS DIE AS GOV'T BLOCKS WELLS

GREELEY, Colo. – Farmers in Colorado are watching their fields dry up amid one of the worst droughts in the state’s history.
 But just a few feet beneath them, the water is so plentiful it’s flooding basements and causing septic systems to overflow.
Yet the government will not permit farmers to pump the water to save their crops.
With a lower-than-normal snowpack, farmers in northeastern Colorado who rely on the South Platte River are facing severe water shortages in which they are not able to even water some of their crops.
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The Lowest Interest Rates In History

Yesterday, the 10-year Treasury note hit its lowest interest rate in history. For the third day in a row.

I didn't hear that reported. Did you?

Treasury notes started trading in substantial amounts during World War I, almost 100 years ago. Until Wednesday of this week, the lowest interest rate in history on 10-year notes was 1.672%. That was in February 1946, twelve years before I was born. (That rate re-appeared, for a few brief moments, last September.)

On Tuesday, the rate for 10-year notes closed at 1.73%. On Wednesday, the rate dropped past the all-time low, and kept going, finishing at 1.62%. Thursday set a new all-time low, finishing at 1.58%. On Friday, the rate for 10-year notes finished at 1.47%.

That's a 15% drop. In three days.

The yield on 10-year Treasury notes actually plunged all the way down to 1.44% during Friday trading. That's the new all-time low. Until Monday, at least.

Here are some questions that come to mind:

Why is this happening?

Is this good news or bad news? (Hint to Obama Administration: you can take credit for it.)

Will the trend continue?

What does it mean for the middle class? For mortgages and car loans? For corporate profits? For fiscal policy?

Who gains and who loses?

Unfortunately, there are no answers to any of these questions today, because reaching a 100-year low in interest rates is not considered news.

Here are the headlines yesterday from the Associated Press:

The unemployment rate rose from 8.1% to 8.2%.
The UN Human Rights Council voted to condemn Syria.
There was a large fire in New Mexico (video!).
A black bear wondered into a schoolyard (more video!).
Here are the headlines yesterday from ABC News:

A teacher slapped a student.
A roommate issued a humorous apology for taking someone else's milk from the fridge.
"Why Idiot Humans Are Best Cyber Weapon"
A new record was set for world's longest Ferris Wheel ride.
A mother choked a bully.
I hate to be a scold. I really do. But important things are happening. Can someone in the media, or among our so-called leaders, please pay some attention? Please?

You can't lead people anywhere if your eyes are closed.

Courage,

Alan Grayson

Question Of The Day

Where is your favorite place to vacation in the summertime?

Caption This Photo 6-4-12

Proposal Pushes New Md. Buildings Back From Major Water Pipes

A local utility is trying to make changes to avoid the "substantial risk(s) to public safety" posed by the explosion of large water mains.

The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission is holding a public hearing Wednesday on a proposal that would require new development in Montgomery and Prince George's counties to be at least 80 feet away from the largest water pipes. There are exceptions built into the proposal, including projects that get an architect's approval.

The lines covered can burst with the force of 20 to 200 tons of dynamite because of the pressure inside. That happened most recently in Capitol Heights in January 2011, and along River Road in December 2008. 

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Dennis Prager Q & A At University Of Denver

George Will Schools Krugman on Gov. Walker: $3 Billion Deficit 'He Inherited' Has 'Become a Surplus'

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman got another much-needed education from syndicated columnist George Will on ABC's This Week Sunday.

After Krugman impugned Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wisc.) for his so-called "fiscal irresponsibility," Will simply and quite accurately responded, "A more than $3 billion budget that he inherited, a deficit, has now become a surplus" (video follows with transcript and commentary):

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, HOST: We have a couple minutes left before we have to take a break, and I just quickly want to go to you, George Will, because you're calling this recall election in Wisconsin, coming up on Tuesday, Governor Scott Walker, the Republican, facing a recall, the second most important election this year.

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Craig Wins Straw Poll At 2012 MDYR Convention

Harford County Executive David Craig wins first 2014 Gubernatorial Straw Poll at MDYR Convention

ANNAPOLIS-
The Maryland Young Republicans conducted the first Straw Poll for the 2014 Gubernatorial Election at their annual convention in Annapolis today.

Harford County Executive David Craig finished first with 25% of the vote. Former Lt. Governor and RNC Chairman Michael Steele finished second with 21%, followed by former Secretary Larry Hogan with 13% of the vote. The entire vote total is listed below.

The Straw Poll was held in conjunction with the 2012 Maryland Young Republicans Convention held at the Doubeltree Hotel in Annapolis today. Young Republicans from across Maryland came for this annual event to hear from great Republican speakers, network, and organize for the 2012 General Election.

Speakers included 2nd Congressional District Candidate State Senator Nancy Jacobs, 3rd Congressional District Candidate Eric Knowles, U.S. Senate Candidate Dan Bongino, 4th District Congressional Candidate Faith Loudon, 5th District Congressional Candidate and House Minority Leader Tony O'Donnell, Howard County Board of Education Member Brian Meshkin, and Phil Bell from the Maryland Republican Party.

"We were so pleased that so many great Republican candidates and leaders took the time to come to Annapolis and talk with our folks," said Maryland Young Republicans Chairman Brian Griffiths. "So many dismiss our generation as the future of the Republican Party. These leaders recognize that we are the present of the Republican Party, and that the Young Republicans are integral to the success of our party both here and nationally."

The Maryland Young Republicans also recognized the following distinguished award winners:

Club of the Year: Montgomery County Young Republicans
Man of the Year: Jason Papanikolas, Prince George's Young Republicans
Woman of the Year: Rachael Gingrich, Montgomery County Young Republicans
Lifetime Achievement Award: Heather Olsen, Prince George's Young Republicans
2012 Maryland Young Republicans Convention

2014 Gubernatorial Straw Poll Results
Harford County Executive Candidate David Craig: 25%
Former Lt. Governor Michael Steele: 21%
Former Secretary Larry Hogan: 13%
Frederick County Commissioner Blaine Young: 8%
Corrogan Vaughn (write-in): 8%
2010 Congressional Candidate Charles Lollar: 4%
2010 Gubernatorial Candidate Brian Murphy: 4%
Pat Daly (write-in): 4%
MDYR Chairman Brian Griffiths (write-in): 4%
Former U.S. Senate Candidate Alan Keyes (write-in): 4%
Undecided: 4%
Former Senate Minority Leader Marty Madden and Delegate Pat McDonough were listed on the ballot, but received no votes

Child Prodigy Sho Yano Earns Medical Degree at Age 21

A 21-year-old is about to become the youngest student ever awarded a medical doctorate by the University of Chicago.

Sho Yano, who was reading at age 2, writing at 3 and composing music at 5, will graduate this week from the Pritzker School of Medicine, where he also received a Ph.D. in molecular genetics and cell biology, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Yano began college at age 9 and earned his undergraduate degree from Loyola University at age 12 – summa cum laude, the Tribune reports.

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Salisbury Metro Lions Club

Coach Bags - Longaberger - Vera Bradley Bags BINGO

Thursday, July 26, 2012

The Moose Lodge - Snow Hill Rd. - Salisbury, MD

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. - Games begin at 7:00 p.m.

Tickets: Special $15.00: Buy before 7/13/12

After 7/13/12: $20.00 in advance: $25.00 at the door

For tickets please call 443-880-1743 or 443-736-3927

Benefiting Sight & Hearing

There will be refreshments, 50-50, special games, chinese auctions and much more.

Defense Team: Zimmerman in Police Custody

George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer charged with murder in the killing of Trayvon Martin, surrendered to police Sunday and was booked into jail after having his bail revoked two days earlier.

Zimmerman's legal team said in a tweet that he was in police custody. Zimmerman's bail was revoked because the judge said he and his wife lied to the court about their finances so he could obtain a lower bond.

On Sunday afternoon, about 40 minutes before the 2:30 p.m. deadline to surrender, Zimmerman was listed as an inmate on the jail website. He was listed as being held without bail and having $500 in his jail account.

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Early Thoughts 6-4-12

The best way to have a good idea
Is to have a lot of ideas.

The man who trusts men will make fewer mistakes than he who distrusts men.

A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.

VP Joe Biden's Daughter Marries Doctor in Delaware

Vice President Joe Biden's daughter Ashley married a Pennsylvania doctor at a ceremony in Delaware, the vice president's office announced late Saturday.

A news release from Biden's office says 30-year-old Ashley Blazer Biden was married Saturday to Dr. Howard David Krein in Wilmington.

She is a social worker for the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families. He is a New Jersey native and a facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, according to The News-Journal of Wilmington.

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Chuck Norris Enters 2012 Political Ring

Legendary action star Chuck Norris says he’s entering the political ring in Tuesday’s recall election for the governorship of Wisconsin, to offset the influence of Democrat powerhouses looking to oust Republican Gov. Scott Walker.

Norris himself is not seeking office, but he’s throwing his name and weight behind Walker.

“When I saw [Democrats] also send in the big guns, former President Bill Clinton himself, against Gov. Walker, I knew I had to enter the ring, too,” Norris says in a brand-new column on WND.

“There’s one primary reason that Clinton came out to Wisconsin to engage in the battle to recall Gov. Walker,” he explained.

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Nine Tornadoes Tear Through Maryland

At least nine tornadoes ripped through Maryland on Friday during a 41/2-hour period, the National Weather Service said Sunday.

Tornadoes touched down in six counties — including one that left a four-mile path of destruction in Carroll County, according to the Weather Service. Two were injured in a separate tornado that tore through Pleasant Hills in Harford County.

The first of the nine tornadoes hit at 2:29 p.m. and the last was at 7:06 p.m., the National Weather Service reported.

The twisters were the first to hit Maryland this year. The state does not often see tornadoes — the previous one had been in April 2011. Before that, Maryland hadn't had one since 2008.

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