Salisbury News: 03/08/13

Friday, March 08, 2013

U.S. CONGRESSMEN ATTEND CHAVEZ'S FUNERAL--WITH CASTRO AND AHMADINEJAD

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's funeral on Friday attracted foreign leaders, athletes, liberal celebrities, reports CBS News:

In the funeral hall, more than 30 political leaders including Cuba's Raul Castro and Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stood at attention before Chavez's flag-draped coffin. Many of them were welcomed by Nicolas Maduro, the vice president who will later be sworn in as interim president. The glass-topped coffin, which has been open since Wednesday, was shut for the funeral.

Congressman Gregory Meeks (D-NY) and former Congressman William Delahunt (D-MA) attended the Venezuelan autocrat's funeral. Hollywood actor Sean Penn and Reverend Jesse Jackson were also at the funeral. "We pray God today that you will heal the breach between the U.S. and Venezuela," Jackson said.
More

First There Was IQ. Then EQ. But Does CQ — Creative Intelligence — Matter Most?

In his new book Creative Intelligence, Bruce Nussbaum argues that creativity is an undervalued skill that anyone can cultivate. Not just for artists and musicians, he argues, creative intelligence — or CQ for short — is what separates the winners and losers of the business world as well. The author, a professor at Parsons The New School for Design in New York, recently spent a few minutes explaining how each of us can go about cultivating our own CQ.

What is creative intelligence?

Taking original ideas and scaling them into the creation of new products and services. I really believe that we are all born with a capacity to be creative, and we get it beat out of us in a lot of the schools that we go to. We have to relearn it, and it’s not that hard.

How can we be more creative?

Creativity is all about making connections and seeing patterns. It’s not a light bulb that goes off in your head. Before that light bulb goes off, lots of things are happening. Lots of ideas. We need time to step back and make connections between those things. We need to stop being hyperconnected and deliberately take a moment to be mindful about what we’re doing.

People often associate creativity with solo artists, but you argue that collaboration fosters creativity more often than working alone. How so?

How Did the State Department Come So Close to Honoring a Woman Who May Support Attacks on the U.S.?

The State Department came this close to honoring a woman who may be seriously anti-American.

Samira Ibrahim was scheduled to receive the International Women of Courage award today in honor of her actions during Egypt’s uprising, but within hours of the presentation, the State Department held back after finding out its honoree may have quoted Hitler on Twitter and even celebrated attacks against America.

One of Ibrahim’s tweets reads, “Today is the anniversary of 9/11. May every year come with America burning.” Another reads, “An explosion on a bus carrying Israelis in Burgas airport in Bulgaria on the Black Sea. Today is a very sweet day with a lot of very sweet news.”
More

One Year Later, The Makers Of ‘Pink Slime’ Are Hanging On, And Fighting Back

Five weeks before the Internet went mad over the presence of “pink slime” in ground beef across the U.S., the product’s creator was being inducted into the Nebraska Business Hall of Fame.

It was Feb. 2, 2012, and Eldon Roth – a man without a college degree – was being celebrated for his life’s work: inventing a method of extracting lean beef from the scraps that would otherwise have been discarded during the butchering process. He was hailed as an innovator in his field, not only for utilizing previously wasted beef, but also for an almost fanatical concern with food safety. The Dakota Dunes, South Dakota-based company he founded, Beef Products, Inc., had developed a reputation for going beyond federal sanitation guidelines in order to prevent bacteria and other microbes from infiltrating its product, according to food scientists who routinely visited the plant. But mostly it was known for producing a leaner and less expensive beef product by combining conventional ground beef with Roth’s unique innovation: lean finely textured beef, or LFTB.

At a legislative prayer breakfast in Annapolis on Friday, renowned Johns Hopkins Hospital surgeon, Dr. Ben Carson, confirmed that he would not be running for president in the future.

Carson said people have been urging him to run for president, but he doesn't aspire to run for office.

In an interview with The Associated Press on Friday, Carson said it would be tough for him to run, because "I don't believe in political correctness." Carson also said he doesn't believe in "getting into bed with special interest groups."
More

The Pay Gap Is Not As Bad As You (and Sheryl Sandberg) Think

It’s a galling and often cited statistic: women make 77 (or 81, or 82) cents to a man’s dollar. President Obama campaigned on it last year, announcing in an ad that “women being paid 77 cents on the dollar for doing the same work as men isn’t just unfair — it hurts families.” Everyone from Lilly Ledbetter to Marlo Thomas has repeated it. And there it is on Page 6 of Sheryl Sandberg’s book, Lean In:
Progress also remains equally sluggish when it comes to compensation. In 1970, American women were paid $.59 for every dollar their male counterparts made. By 2010, women had protested, fought and worked their butts off to raise that compensation to $.77 for every dollar men made.

While the Ireton signs are few and far between, funny how I keep finding them on landlord properties and or on non registered voters properties. Say goodnight Gracie.

One-Time Local Congressional Candidate Pleads Guilty

Maryland State Prosecutor Emmet Davitt says former Congressional candidate Wendy Rosen admits she violated state election laws.

Rosen was running against 1st District Congressman Andy Harris last year when evidence surfaced that she had been voting in a couple of states.

Prosecutor Davitt says as a result of the plea agreement, Rosen has been sentenced to concurrent suspended terms of one year in jail, five years probation and a $5,000.00 fine.
More

The Next Gun Control Battle: A Right To Carry Firearms In Public?

With all the battles going on over guns, now there is a new one: whether there is a constitutional right to carry a firearm in public. The Supreme Court has said the Second Amendment guarantees the right to have a gun at home, but it left open whether that right extends to the street. Last month, two powerful federal courts came down on opposite sides of the question. The issue will no doubt eventually land in the Supreme Court – and the stakes will be high.

In 2008, the Supreme Court overturned a lot of accepted wisdom about gun control when it ruled in District Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment creates an individual right to possess a firearm. Until then, it was widely – if not universally – believed that the amendment was about raising “a well-regulated militia” – not about guaranteeing individuals the right to carry a gun.

Md. Man Accused Of Exporting Goods To Iran

GREENBELT — A Maryland man has been indicted on charges of exporting American manufactured industrial products to Iran.

A federal grand jury returned an indictment against 32-year-old Ali Saboonchi of Parkville, Md., on Monday. The indictment was unsealed Thursday when Saboonchi was arrested.
More

Are You Healthy Enough To Survive 10 More Years? A New Test Will Tell You

Want to know your chances of dying in the next 10 years? Here are some bad signs: getting winded walking several blocks, smoking, and having trouble pushing a chair across the room.

That’s according to a “mortality index” developed by San Francisco researchers for people older than 50.

The test scores may satisfy people’s morbid curiosity, but the researchers say their 12-item index is mostly for use by doctors. It can help them decide whether costly health screenings or medical procedures are worth the risk for patients unlikely to live 10 more years.

It’s best to take the test with a doctor, who can discuss what the score means in the context of patients’ own medical history, the study authors say.

The index “wasn’t meant as guidance about how to alter your lifestyle,” said lead author Dr. Marisa Cruz of the University of California, San Francisco.

Beer Goggles

Researchers at U.K.'s Durham University have finally answered one of life's most important questions.... do "beer goggles" really make people look more attractive? And as it turns out, booze doesn't actually make people look more attractive to a drinker, it just turns up their level of lust. According to the study's author, Dr. Amanda Ellison, "Alcohol switches off the rational and decision-making areas of the brain, while leaving the areas to do with sexual desire relatively intact." So, next time someone blames their drunken date-night on "beer goggles," feel free to tell them science shows otherwise.

Obama Administration Targets Gun Owners With $1 Million Firearm Safety Campaign

The Obama administration is taking to the airwaves with a $1 million gun safety radio and television campaign, the Justice Department announced today.

The campaign will urge gun owners to properly store their firearms to keep them from falling into the wrong hands, as well as encouraging people to report lost or stolen guns to law enforcement.

The ads, produced by the National Crime Prevention Council, will run this summer on more than 1,700 television stations, nearly 15,000 radio stations and more than 500 cable networks.
More

10 Plastic Surgery Fails: Before, After And Final Form

Plastic surgery can have tremendous results - sometimes. Like anything that has positive effects though, there are people can never get enough. Sometimes, it's having grotesquelyhuge breasts or a hacked up nose job (looking at you Jackson family), but other times, people actually ruin their body and probably their soul.

We took some of the worst plastic surgery muck-ups we could find, and we asked ourselves, what would happen if this kept going, if they just kept following the path that their 'before' and 'after' pictures reveal? What kind of person (or creature) would we arrive at? We call this a "final form." So here it is: 10 Before, After and Final Forms.

More

Maryland State Police To Send Amber Alerts To Cellphones

PIKESVILLE, Md. —Maryland State Police said Amber alerts are now being sent to all cellphones designed to receive wireless emergency alerts.

The alerts are used to help find abducted children. State police said they have been instrumental in the safe recovery of 602 children nationwide. Previously, cellphone owners only received alerts if they had visited a website and opted in to the alert system. State police said users can shut off the alerts by changing the notifications settings in their cellphone or contacting their service provider.
More

Don’t Cry For Hugo

The Left has already started the whitewashing of Hugo Chávez’s record, and I have no doubt that within days his image will adorn T-shirts the way the thuggish Che Guevara does.

Within minutes of the announcement of the strongman’s death, Ken Livingstone, London’s former mayor, tweeted the following:

More

An Update On The Death Penalty Repeal Bill (SB276)

The House Judiciary Committee Passes the Death Penalty Repeal: My Thoughts.

By Delegate Mike McDermottMar. 8th, 2013The Death Penalty Repeal Bill (SB276) just passed the House Judiciary Committee. I voted against the bill. Today, the O'Malley-Brown Administration asked the House Judiciary Committee to do something in the future that he is unwilling to do for the past: eliminate the Death Penalty in Maryland. The governor will not commute the Death sentences of the 5-inmates currently on Death row testifying that he needed to evaluate each on a "case by case basis"; yet he asks the General Assembly to consider all murderers the same going forward and make the tremendous leap that none of them qualify for the Death Penalty. We offered amendments that would keep the Death Penalty a viable sentence for mass school homicides and even for the mass killing of a million people by nuclear arms, but the Democrats would not yield. In this action, they have removed protections from our law enforcement officers and our corrections officers all over the state from inmates already sentenced to Life Imprisonment. How do you control an animal who is already in prison under a Life Without Parole sentence if you cannot hold a Death Penalty sentence over his head? By this action, we clear the way for the General Assembly to render Maryland impotent in addressing the very worst of the worst in our society. It is truly against the wishes of a vast majority of Marylanders and will serve to insure that more innocent people will be killed by those whose only sentence can be Life Without Parole.

White House Tours Off, Easter Egg Roll On For Now

The White House says it is going forward with plans for its 135-year tradition of the Easter egg roll, but is dashing the hopes of some Iowa children who hoped to visit the president's home.

Sixth graders at St. Paul's Lutheran School in Waverly, Iowa, had their upcoming visit canceled as the White House suspended all tours under across-the-board government spending cuts in a partisan budget battle. The disappointed class put a video on Facebook asking for the tour to be reinstated. "The White House is our house, please let us visit," the children say in unison.

White House press secretary Jay Carney was asked during his Thursday briefing how the president would respond to the students. Carney said it is unfortunate that the budget cuts require such trade-offs, but the Secret Service's options for savings included canceling tours, furloughing staff or cutting overtime. "In order to allow the Secret Service to best fulfill its core mission, the White House made the decision that we would unfortunately have to temporarily suspend these tours," Carney said.
More

Police Nationwide Say "You're On Your Own"

The Ravens Give Gifts Of Gratitude

The Baltimore Ravens are not only World Champions, but they are also big givers.

As a ‘thank you’ gift to the New Orleans Police Department Traffic Division, the Ravens recently gave them two 2013 Harley Davidson FLHP motorcycles.

Wide receiver Jacoby Jones presented the motorcycles on behalf of the Ravens during a recent press conference held at the New Orleans Police Department Special Operations Division. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and police superintendent Ronal Serpas were there to accept the bikes.
More

Basketball Playoffs: Wicomico High Boys, Mardela High Girls To Play Friday Night

Congratulations and best of luck to the two WCPS basketball teams with playoff games in the next few days! Wicomico High's boys team beat Easton High handily Tuesday night and will now play in the 2A regional championship at Joppatowne High at 6:30 p.m. Friday. The Mardela Girls Basketball team has advanced to the state 1A semifinal vs. Dunbar High, game at 9 p.m. Friday at UMBC's RAC Arena.

Its A Three Way Race For District One: UPDATE

The numbers are in the for District 1 and Mrs. Polk and Mrs. Jackson are TIED. This means there will be THREE candidates going to the General Election, not two. Unless more votes come in today, this will be the outcome for District 1. So you see Folks, every vote counts.

UPDATE: The final count is in.
Shields, 70
Polk, 53
Jackson, 53

Scaffolding Begins To Rise At Washington Monument

WASHINGTON (AP) - Workers have started building scaffolding around the 555-foot-tall Washington Monument to make repairs to the damaged stonework following a 2011 earthquake.

The workers were building the scaffolding Thursday. It's slowly rising from the base of the monument.

The National Park Service awarded a $9.6 million contract in September 2012 to begin repairing the monument. It will involve scaffolding around the entire monument to George Washington, sealing cracks, repointing the mortar and strengthening weak spots.
More

A State Judge In Pennsylvania Is Standing Up For The Poor

Governor Tom Corbett diverted funds from low-income health insurance programs to finance other items in his state's budget, but Commonwealth Judge Dan Pellegrini has ordered Corbett to reinstate funding to the vital health programs. William R. Caroselli, the attorney representing more than 100 program recipients, said, "What the administration did was reprehensible and we're pleased the Commonwealth Court ordered them to reinstate this important program." An attorney for House Speaker Sam Smith, one of the lawmakers responsible for diverting funds, said his client will try to get the ruling overturned. It's shameful that Republicans in Pennsylvania want to balance the budget on the backs of the poor, but thanks to Judge Pellegrini, they're not getting away with it for now.

Minimum-Wage Workers In New York State Could Be Getting A Raise

Yesterday, that state's Assembly voted to increase the minimum wage from $7.25 to $9 per hour, and include automatic increases tied to inflation. The bill passed 101-44 in the Assembly, but is now stalled in the State Senate. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver called for the increase in response to President Obama's State of the Union speech last month. The proposal is not far off from a Governor Cuomo's recommendation, which calls for raising the minimum wage to $8.75 as part of a budget proposal later this month. State Senate Republican Leader, Dean Skelos, has spoken out against the increase, saying, "It just seems to be 'how high can you go?' with them." But some New York Republicans may be in the mood to bargain – trading an increase in the wage for some middle class tax cuts. It's about time for all workers get paid a living wage in our nation, and $9 isn't there yet, but it's nice to see New York moving in the right direction for low-wage workers.

Annapolis Rally

Photo Caption (L/R): Sheriff John Price (Kent), Sheriff Dallas Pope (Talbot), Sheriff Mike Lewis (Wicomico), Sheriff Reggie Mason (Worcester),

Sheriff Randy Bounds (Caroline), Sheriff Gary Hofmann (Queen Anne’s).

Annapolis – Representatives from the Maryland Sheriff’s Association recently attended, and spoke at a rally at the State House to voice support for Second Amendment issues that involve gun bills working through the Maryland Legislature. The rally was sponsored by a number of gun rights’ organizations and associations; all of which were offering opposing testimony to bills that were designed to infringe, negate, or diminish gun ownership rights under the provisions of the Second Amendment. Well over 1,000 citizens from these groups were in attendance. The Maryland Sheriff’s Association had previously taken legislative positions in opposition to gun bill proposals that were convoluted, restricted law enforcement, or that attacked the fundamental rights provided in the Second Amendment. On major gun bills of interest, Maryland Sheriff’s Association President Sheriff Mike Lewis (Wicomico) and Sheriff Tim Cameron (St. Mary’s - serving as Chair of the Maryland Sheriff’s Legislative Committee) testified in opposition to provisions of gun legislation that adversely impacted gun ownership, sales, transfer, licensing, and other prohibitions that restricted a qualified citizen’s right to purchase or own a firearm.

Representing the Maryland Sheriffs, and attending this rally were Sheriff John Price (Kent), Sheriff Gary Hofmann (Queen Anne’s), Sheriff Randy Bounds (Caroline), Sheriff Dallas Pope (Talbot), Sheriff Mike Lewis (Wicomico), and Sheriff Reggie Mason (Worcester). Sheriff James Phillips (Dorchester) was slated to attend though experienced a last minute conflict.

The Maryland Sheriffs, as Maryland Constitutional officers, had previously met and discussed the current gun bills; assessing their public impact and constitutionality. In formulating a stance on these bills, the Maryland Sheriffs reinforced the need for thorough and complete background checks to prevent those who are disqualified from owning or purchasing a firearm. Further, the Sheriffs supported efforts to fully identify and screen those persons with mental health needs who pose a risk to themselves or others from owning or possessing firearms. Another tangent of their position involved the full and effective prosecution of all current firearms statutes that involve gun crimes, and in particular those gun crimes with aggravating factors of drugs or acts of violence. Measures to assure the full implementation of sentencing with the maximum penalties applied for gun crimes is of critical importance for the removal of these criminals from our communities. The stance and proclamation of the Maryland Sheriff’s Association in regard to current gun legislation and related public safety aspects is attached to this release.

‘Home Show’ Kicks Off In OC

OCEAN CITY -- The 29th Annual Home, Condo & Outdoor Show will be making its annual appearance in Ocean City and the Roland E. Powell Convention Center this weekend.

The event will be held on Friday, March 8, from noon-6 p.m.; Saturday, March 9, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; and Sunday, March 10, from 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

The “home show” features all-under-one-roof convenience and will display an exciting array of the latest home improvement products and services for your primary residence as well as your second home.
More

ALL CELL PHONES WITH WIRELESS EMERGENCY ALERT CAPABILITY WILL NOW RECEIVE AMBER ALERTS IN MARYLAND

(Pikesville, Maryland) – AMBER Alert notifications are now being sent to every wireless emergency alert (WEA) compliant cell phone in the area of the alert.
Effective immediately, AMBER Alert notifications in Maryland will be sent to all cell phones with wireless emergency alert compatibility in the state. Previously, AMBER Alerts were only received on your cell phone if you had visited a website and chose to ‘opt’ in. This no longer applies to the new AMBER Alert cell phone notification system.

The wireless emergency alert uses a loud tone, similar to the emergency alert system (EAS) messages on radio or television, to notify the public. Additional to the audible sounds, the system will also send a ninety character text message with basic information concerning the AMBER Alert. If you travel outside of Maryland, you will continue to receive alerts issued in the areas you visit.

Since inception, the AMBER Alert system has been instrumental in the safe recovery of 602 children nationwide. The AMBER Alert signals a critical life or death situation. This new system will allow the alert to reach more of the public, and enlist their eyes to help find an abducted child and aid in their safe recovery.

Users who choose not to receive the AMBER Alert can contact their cell phone service provider or shut off the alerts in the “alert/notifications” section of their cellular phone. If the phone is placed on vibrate or silent, the audio tone will not be heard.

The FCC, FEMA and the Wireless Association (CTIA) assisted in the development of this new “Commercial Mobile Alert System”, to notify the public of certain emergencies. Included in this new system is the new AMBER Alert cell phone notification.

Maryland instituted the AMBER Alert program in August of 2002. To date Maryland has issued 33 AMBER Alerts. The AMBER Alert is issued for abducted children only and must meet strict criteria. An AMBER Alert can be requested by law enforcement only. The system is not utilized for Silver Alerts.

Congress Passes Wall Street Reform Act

In 2010, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act to regulate the Wall Street banksters, who crashed our economy in 2008. Despite the fact that many people believe the law doesn't go far enough, Republican lawmakers have spent the past two years working to undercut and water-down the legislation. And Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama thinks the banksters shouldn't be burdened with any regulations at all. Instead of working to prevent Wall Street's high-stakes betting from causing another economic disaster, Sen. Shelby plans to introduce legislation that would require a cost-benefit analysis on any new financial regulations before they can be enacted. This is more than just the typical watering-down of legislation we see from Republicans...this is an attempt to block Wall Street regulation altogether, and an effort to put bankster greed ahead of the needs of our nation. According to Shelby, "if a regulation's cost outweighs its benefits, it should be thrown out." Wouldn't it have been great if Wall Street had done a societal cost-benefit analysis before gambling with our economy? Or if they had to prove that their greed couldn't take down our entire financial system again? Seems to me that Wall Street, which hit a record high yesterday, is doing just fine under the current regulations. The Dodd-Frank Act doesn't go far enough. It's time to strengthen regulations, and implement a financial transaction tax to make Wall Street banksters pay for the risky bets they make with our economy.

Happy International Women's Day

Forgotten Inmate Awarded $15 Mil

Cancer-stricken man, 58, who was kept in solitary confinement for TWO YEARS with no trial after DWI arrest is finally awarded $15m after prison appealed payout

Stephen Slevin was ignored by guards and forced to pull his own tooth out after he wasn't allowed to see a dentist at Dona Ana County jail

His settlement is one of the largest federal civil rights settlements in history involving an inmate

Maryland Might Become First To Enact Statewide 5-cent Bag Charge

Maryland could become the first state to impose a charge for disposable bags this year if a coalition of environmental, religious and business groups persuades lawmakers that a proposed 5-cent fee would help the environment and not burden low-income residents.

The proposed fee, which would apply to plastic and paper bags, comes as at least five other states — Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, Vermont and Washington — contemplate a similar charge. At least six states — Arkansas, California, Florida, New Jersey, Oregon and Rhode Island — are considering banning all disposable bags.

Douglas Shinkle, a senior policy analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures, said momentum for such fees has been growing nationally at a time when cash-strapped states worry that the proliferation of bags in waterways will make it more difficult to comply with strict federal clean-water rules.
More

Husband Sinks $20,000.00 Shot

Moment father of seven whose wife has cancer sinks HALF COURT shot to win $20,000 at Oklahoma City Thunder game - so now he can pay for her treatment
Making a half court shot at an NBA basketball game is pretty special, but for Heath Kufahl it may well be life-changing.

The crowd erupted at Tuesday's Los Angeles Lakers-Oklahoma City Thunder game when the high school sports coach, and fervent Thunder fan, scored the tricky shot, winning $20,000 to go towards his wife Jenni's cancer treatment.
The Kufahls' world was rocked when Jenni was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in October last year.

Challenge To Redskins Name Begins

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Washington Redskins general manager Bruce Allen attended his first trademark hearing Thursday. He heard lawyers and judges fuss over dictionaries, surveys and the actions of offended 18-year-olds while using terms such as "hearsay exception" and "Chevron deference," all in a debate over the team's nickname.

"There was one reference to a delay of game penalty," Allen said, "which was the football part that I understood."

As the 90-minute hearing before three judges on the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board showed, the case against the team is not as simple as declaring that the word "redskins" is a slur and therefore shouldn't have federal trademark protection. The group of five Native American petitioners has to show that the name "Washington Redskins" was disparaging to a significant population of American Indians back when the team was granted the trademarks from 1967 to 1990.
More

Rethink Your Drink

Remember DePietro's On Milford Street?

Paul's Pizza in the old Rt. 12 Pizza location is Paul DePietro. He has come back from New York and has the best Pizza on the entire Eastern Shore. Pick up or eat in only. No deliveries.

New Anne Arundel Co. Executive Probes Suspicious Cameras In County Council Offices

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) — A stunning find in Anne Arundel County: hundreds of security cameras unknown to the police department. Now the new county executive is ordering a full investigation.

Adam May has an inside look at the operation.

Only one man monitored those cameras and he reported to former County Executive John Leopold, who resigned in disgrace.

More

Attention WalMart Shoppers

I lost my job. Have three kids. Please help for food and rent. God Bless.

Salisbury Moving Ahead With Business Disclosure Changes

SALISBURY -- A Business Disclosure Ordinance is being advanced by the Salisbury City Council this week with supporters calling it a clear-cut transparency law while opponents argue that there is no need or public demand for the measure.

The ordinance would require any vendors who contract with Salisbury for more than $3,000 in a single agreement or $10,000 for the fiscal year to fully reveal all partners or owners with more than a 5 percent stake in the company. It would mean that all parties in a LLC or all officers in a corporation would also have to be known before contracting with the city.

“I’d like to see it apply to our vendors as it does in other places,” said Council President Terry Cohen. “It’s only a two-page form and we’re not asking them to disclose their finances, we’re asking them to disclose their beneficial ownership.”
More

Thank God Its Friday 3-8-13

What will you be doing this weekend?

Video Shows Cop Apparently Punching Woman In Face

The officer remains on active duty as Elizabeth, N.J. police investigate
Police in New Jersey are investigating a video that appears to show an officer punch a woman in the face.

Cell phone video posted on YouTube shows a group of people fighting outside the Envy nightclub in Elizabeth.

At one point, an officer and a few others emerge from the crowd, and it appears the cop reaches back and punches a woman directly in the face.

The circumstances behind the incident were not immediately known. Elizabeth Police said they are investigating, and the officer remains on active duty.

More

BREAKING NEWS: Unemployment Falls To 7.7 Percent In February

Unemployment rate falls to 7.7 percent in February, as employers add 236,000 jobs.

The Circus Is In Town

Wanna Bet?

Va. Photographer Finds Haunting Religious Apparitions

A Virginia photographer says her quest for a neutral background brought her face-to-face with Jesus.

In 1998, Athalyn Rose needed a black backdrop, so she painted one herself.

"I used a brand new 9-foot-by-15-foot muslin cloth, which I had in my cellar," says Rose in a recent interview with WTOP.

Rose brought the cloth inside, and draped it over boxes to dry.

As she set up the backdrop in her living room, the sunlight streaming through her sliding glass doors illuminated the cloth.

She describes what she saw as "my miracle."
More

Korean War Veteran Granted Wish

Korean War Veteran, 82, with only a year to live granted dying wish to walk the deck of the ship he served on one last time
Korean War veteran Gerald Bowman gamely walked up the gangplank to board the ship he had not seen in almost six decades.

The 82-year-old is suffering from congestive heart failure with only about a year to live and his dying wish was to walk the decks of the USS Laffey on which he served four years, including three tours off Korea.

Wearing a USS Laffey hat, he led reporters through the ship at the Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum on Charleston Harbor Friday, stopping by his old bunk and then into the engine room where as a machinist mate he worked, sometimes in sweltering temperatures of more than 120 degrees.

When you come through the Plaza you cannot go straight through to the light.

Resort Area Quick To Bounce Back From Strong Winter Storm

OCEAN CITY -- Despite high winds, pouring rain and heavy surf that pounded the region throughout much of Wednesday, the resort area was largely spared widespread damage and was relatively back to normal by Thursday morning.

While the storm lived up to its hype in terms of temporary impacts in and around the resort area, it was largely business as usual by Thursday morning with little evidence of the pounding rain and high winds that lashed Ocean City and much of Worcester County throughout Wednesday.

The predicted changeover from a classic Nor’easter to a snow storm did briefly occur late Wednesday evening, but the storm failed to live up to the hype on that side of the equation. By Thursday morning, the storm had passed and although heavy surf still pounded the beaches, the sun was shining as Ocean City crews began to assess the damage caused during the prior 24 hours or so. At the Inlet, bulldozers pushed mounds of sand that accumulated on the parking lot back onto the beach and other crews were seen around Ocean City repairing power lines and clearing debris.
More

Waterman Cleared Of Illegal Clamming Due To Lack Of Notice

There was nothing fishy about a waterman digging for clams in a protected zone of the Chesapeake Bay because the state natural resources department failed to publish the area’s specific boundaries, Maryland’s top court has held.

Some areas in the Chesapeake Bay are off-limits to clamming in order to protect the ecosystem, but a waterman argued that the Department of Natural Resources failed to communicate exactly where these areas were. The Court of Appeals said that while the Department of Natural Resources published notice of the Chesapeake Bay’s protected zones in The Baltimore Sun and the Waterman’s Gazette, it failed to include a map, detailed chart or exact coordinates of off-limits fishing areas and therefore could not prosecute a fisherman found clamming in one of the zones.

The decision last week reversed a lower court that had found Edward Bruce Lowery Jr. guilty of digging clams in a protected area.

State fisheries laws ban clam harvesting in certain areas to protect aquatic vegetation and maintain the bay’s ecosystem. These are called “submerged aquatic vegetation,” or SAV, zones. State law requires DNR to “publish by public notice, delineations of SAV protection zones and revisions to SAV protection zones.” Lowery claimed the protected boundaries were not properly advertised with specific maps of banned areas, but the state contended it had published a notice of the zones in two publications and was not required by law to provide more specific charts and latitudes.

Mornings Not For Erin Burnett, Demanding Sizable Buy Out

Erin Burnett made her morning-show debut yesterday on CNN with Chris Cuomo for Pope Benedict XVI’s last day on the job. But it doesn’t mean she’s going to end up there permanently, sources tell The Post’s Michael Shain. It seems Burnett is digging in her high heels and refusing the new morning assignment. She has a clause in her contract that requires CNN to air her show in prime time. If new boss Jeff Zucker wants her to get up at 4 a.m., Erin is demanding a sizable chunk of cash — more than her $2.5 million salary — to buy her out of the prime-time clause. Insiders say Zucker believes she should be grateful she’s being offered a marquee job and he has started to look elsewhere for an anchor to partner with Cuomo. Burnett is telling her staff she doesn’t want to go to the morning. “What she means is she doesn’t want to go at the old price,” sniffed a source.
Source