Tuesday, April 09, 2013

At Least 14 Hurt In Stabbing Spree On Texas Campus; Suspect Bbelieved To Be Student

At least 14 people were hurt Tuesday in a stabbing spree at a Texas community college apparently carried out by a student, authorities said. Sheriff’s officials said the suspect was in custody.

At least two victims were in critical condition. It was not immediately clear how severe the other injuries were. The stabbing happened at the CyFair campus of Lone Star College, in the Houston suburb of Cypress.

The school said the attack happened “in and around” its health science building. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia said that authorities were not certain what the weapon or motive was. He said the suspect was 21 years old.
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The Official Ultra-Ever Dry Product

Lynette’s Law Supporters Disappointed Therapy Abuse Will Not Become Crime

After a difficult few months of fighting to pass Lynette’s Law — a bill to prohibit sexual abuse by therapists — Heather Lynette Sinclair and bill co-sponsors got less than half of what they wanted.

Of the two bills they sought, only HB 56, a civil initiative requiring background checks for mental health therapists and counselors, was passed just days before the 2013 session came to a close.

Its partner bill, HB 60, to make sexual abuse of mental health clients a crime, was never given a vote in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.
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As Confidence In Dollar Wanes, Over A Dozen States Push For Gold As Legal Tender

In more than a dozen states, legislators are pushing for a movement back to a world where gold is considered money. As Bloomberg reports, lawmakers in Arizona are poised to follow Utah, which authorized bullion for currency in 2011. Similar bills are advancing in Kansas, South Carolina and other states to recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender. "The legislation is about signaling discontent with monetary policy and about what Ben Bernanke is doing," which seems confirmed by the recent shift in Texas to bring its gold back from the New York bank warehouse. The new measures would give "people the option of using money that won’t lose any purchasing power to inflation," one supporter of the bill explained, with another adding, "there is a fear that the government, or Bernanke in particular and the Federal Reserve, is pursuing a policy that will lead to the collapse of the dollar." The U.S. Constitution bars states from coining money and also forbids them from making anything except gold and silver coin tender for paying debts. Advocates say that opens the door for the states to allow bullion as legal tender.

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‘Rain Tax’ On Property Owners For Bay Cleanup Survives Attempt To Delay It

An attempt to delay implementation of stormwater clean-up fees that will cost Maryland property owners millions come July failed in the legislature’s final day. The delay died after it was attached to a bill exempting nonprofits and government agencies from the fees known by critics as “the rain tax.”

The amendment to delay the fees for two years was sponsored by Sen. Edward Kasemeyer, D-Howard, who said the timing was not right for an increase in government fees, even though he supported the principle that governments should invest in environmental clean-up.

The House of Delegates committee refused to bring this revision of the bill to the floor for a vote, and the end result is water clean-up fees will be charged to every commercial and residential property owner without exception.
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Homeschooling: The Future of Liberty

A common feature of authoritarian regimes is the criminalization of alternatives to government-controlled education. Dictators recognize the danger that free thought poses to their rule, and few things promote the thinking of "unapproved" thoughts like an education controlled by parents instead of the state. That is why the National Socialist (Nazi) government of Germany outlawed homeschooling in 1938.

Sadly, these Nazi-era restrictions on parental rights remain the law in Germany, leaving parents who wish greater control over their children's education without options. That is why in 2006 Uwe and Hannalore Romeike, a German couple who wanted to homeschool their three children for religious reasons, sought asylum in the United States. Immigration judge Lawrence Burman upheld their application for asylum, recognizing that the freedom of parents to homeschool was a "basic human right."

Unfortunately, the current US administration does not see it that way, and has announced that it is appealing Judge Burman's decision. If the administration is successful, the Romeikes could be sent back to Germany where they will be forced to send their children to schools whose teaching violates their religious beliefs. If they refuse, they face huge fines, jail time, or even the loss of custody of their children!

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WCSO Press Release 4-9-13

HAUSER'S LAW

Tax rates in the U.S. were much higher in the 1940s and 1950s, but it didn’t result in the government collecting more tax revenue as a % of GDP. The tax code isn’t 60,000 pages because the corrupt politicians want to collect more taxes. It is 60,000 pages because our politicians have been bought off by special interests to give them tax breaks. The tax code will never be simplified because politicians would lose power. No matter what happens, the government will never collect tax receipts much more than 20% of GDP.

“No matter what the tax rates have been, in postwar America tax revenues have remained at about 19.5% of GDP.” – William Kurt Hauser

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Tweet Of The Day

Dear MSNBC, if our kids belong to you, then do your kids belong to us? ... If so, can we take them hunting after church in our big pickup truck?

~Sarah Palin

Who else?

Bongino Exploring Options For 2014

Click To Englarge

SOURCE

More Than 101 Million Working Age Americans Do Not Have A Job

The jobs recovery is a complete and total myth. The percentage of the working age population in the United States that had a job in March 2013 was exactly the same as it was all the way back in March 2010. In addition, as you will see below, there are now more than 101 million working age Americans that do not have a job. But even though the employment level in the United States has consistently remained very low over the past three years, the Obama administration keeps telling us that unemployment is actually going down.

In fact, they tell us that the unemployment rate has declined from a peak of 10.0% all the way down to 7.6%. And they tell us that in March the unemployment rate fell by 0.1% even though only 88,000 jobs were added to the U.S. economy. But it takes at least 125,000 new jobs a month just to keep up with population growth. So how in the world are they coming up with these numbers? Well, the reality is that the entire decline in the unemployment rate over the past three years can be accounted for by the reduction in size of the labor force.

In other words, the Obama administration is getting unemployment to go down by pretending that millions upon millions of unemployed Americans simply do not want jobs anymore. We saw this once again in March. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 600,000 Americans dropped out of the labor market during that month alone. That pushed the labor force participation rate down to 63.3%, which is the lowest it has been in more than 30 years. So please don't believe the hype. The sad truth is that there has been no jobs recovery whatsoever.

If things were getting better, there would not be more than 101 million working age Americans without a job.

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OCPD Officer Sued For Excessive Force; Town Seeks Dismissal, Denies Any Wrongdoing

OCEAN CITY -- A resort police officer, who allegedly viciously beat a Severn man during an incident outside a resort nightclub last August, is seeking a dismissal of the case on a variety of grounds including a nearly blanket denial of the allegations.

In March, attorneys for Branden Thomas, 26, filed suit in U.S. District Court against Ocean City Police Pfc. Ryan Flanagan and the department alleging the officer of an unprovoked attack against Thomas outside a midtown nightclub in August. The suit seeks an undisclosed amount of damages to be determined at trial for several charges against the officer including assault and battery, false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution and violations of his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights to freedom from seizure.

“It is alleged that the individual police officer defendant made an unreasonable seizure of the person of plaintiff Branden Thomas, thereby violating his rights under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and that this individual police officer defendant battered the plaintiff and otherwise utilized excessive and unwarranted force during the course of said seizure,” the complaint filed in March reads.
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Your Kids Don't Belong To You

Transportation Fund ‘Lockbox’ Sent To Voters

Voters next year will be asked to approve a constitutional amendment creating a “lockbox” to prevent raids on the Transportation Trust Fund for other purposes, but Republican opponents said the measure was a sham that would provide little protection.

Sponsored by Senate President Mike Miller as a companion to an increase in the gasoline tax, the measure, SB829, provides that money can only be taken out of the Transportation Trust Fund after a three-fifths vote of both houses of the Maryland General Assembly once the governor has declared a state of “fiscal emergency.”

Money from the gas tax, vehicle sales tax and vehicle registration fees flow into the trust fund. Over the past decade, billions have been taken out of the trust fund for other programs to help balance the budget. All but $1.1 billion in highway user revenues has been repaid.
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Gay Connecticut Couple Accused Of Raping Adopted Children Will Face Trial

George Harasz, 49, and Douglas Wirth, 45, of Glastonbury, withdrew a deal with prosecutors that would have given them suspended prison sentences and probation, according to reports. The surprise move comes as new allegations by three more adopted children surfaced Friday.

Bowdoin College, an elite university located in Maine, has recently found itself the nexus of a massive influx of controversy.

…And it’s all because its president talked down the wrong person.

Bowdoin President Barry Mills reportedly engaged in a golf game during the summer of last year with philanthropist and investor Thomas Klingenstein who, while not being a graduate of Bowdoin, was himself interested in the college’s approach to education. The result was an apparently awkward conversation during which Klingenstein complained of Bowdoin’s excessive celebration of “racial and ethnic difference,” in his words, rather than of “common American identity.” It is unclear precisely how sharp the conversation got, but it evidently distressed Mills enough that he decided to mention Klingenstein (albeit not by name) in his subsequent commencement address as a particularly unpleasant golfing partner who’d interrupted his backswing to spout racist platitudes.
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Delaware State Police Seeks CALEA Reaccreditation

Monday, April 8, 2013

Resume:
Dover- CALEA Accreditation Assessment team invites public comment.

Final preparations are underway for the on-site assessment of the Delaware State Police by representatives from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA). The assessment is scheduled for April 15 – 18, 2013 and the CALEA team will examine all aspects of the DSP’s policy and procedures, management, operations and support services. As part of the on-site assessment, agency personnel and members of the community are invited to offer comments.

The Delaware State Police was originally accredited in 1988 and reaccredited in 1993, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010. Maintaining this status is an on-going process and requires constant monitoring and updating of policies and procedures to assure that the Delaware State Police meet the Commission’s standards. Reaccreditation is a formal recognition of the agency’s professional excellence.

The Delaware State Police was the first law enforcement agency in Delaware to receive International Law Enforcement Accreditation. There are over 600 accredited agencies in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Barbados.

As part of the on-site assessment, a toll-free telephone number has been established to invite agency employees and members of the public to offer comments. All calls are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with CALEA Standards. Calls can be made to (800) 993-9133 on Tuesday, April 16, 2013 between the hours of 1:00 - 3:00 P.M..

The Delaware State Police must comply with 480 law enforcement accreditation standards in order to achieve reaccreditation. The assessment team is composed of law enforcement practitioners from similar but out-of-state agencies. The assessors will review written materials, interview individuals and visit the various Troops and Sections throughout the state where compliance can be observed.

The assessors are Darrell E. Stilwell (Retired Lt. Colonel, Virginia State Police) and Albert Manint (Retired Lieutenant, Illinois State Police). Once the Commission’s assessors complete their review of the agency, they report back to the full Commission, which will then determine if the agency is to be granted reaccredited status.

Persons wishing to offer written comments about the Delaware State Police’s ability to meet the standards for accreditation are requested to write: Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA) at 13575 Heathcote Boulevard, Suite 320, Gainesville, VA 20155 or call (703) 352-4225 Attention: Ms. Maya Mitchell, Program Manager.

Maryland Lawmakers Pass Dozens Of Bills On Final Day

ANNAPOLIS -- Maryland lawmakers passed a flurry of bills before adjourning at midnight Monday, including a measure permitting medical marijuana and one overturning a Court of Appeals ruling that singled out pit bulls as inherently dangerous.

Before noon, the state Senate had sent the capital budget to Gov. Martin O'Malley's desk. That budget pays for all of the state's construction projects, including $925 million in new bonds.

Lawmakers also sent O'Malley legislation allowing academic medical centers to opt in to a program to distribute medical marijuana and study its effects. In a news conference with reporters in the State House basement, the governor indicated that he is willing to sign the medical marijuana bill into law.
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Don't Use A Calculator

Ireton to Unveil Plan at Chamber

SALISBURY, MD – Today incumbent Salisbury mayor Jim Ireton is to unveil a new approach to business at the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce. According to the Daily Times, “Let’s Do Business Salisbury”appears geared almost exclusively towards developers, not just those seeking to open a business in Salisbury.
For those members of the business community looking for a a “one-stop shop” for permitting, registration, and other bureaucratic entanglements, Ireton’s presentation will be viewed either with disappointment or as a baby step in the right direction. Newly elected councilman Jake Day and unsuccessful mayoral candidate Joe Albero both focused heavily on the need to court new business and on the need to streamline things like the permitting process, often viewed as an impediment to doing business in Salisbury.
Ireton’s plan involves setting up a kiosk on the first floor of the Salisbury / Wicomico Government Office Building (GOB) with form packets useful to developers. Ireton also hopes to install a similar kiosk at the Chamber’s office on East Main Street.
According to the Daily Times’ Jeremy Cox:

…Those changes will be accompanied by a new, business-friendly atmosphere in the city’s staff offices, Ireton said. Those adopting the customer-service approach are the Mayor’s Office; Public Works; Building, Permits and Inspections; and Planning and Zoning.
… (Asst. City Administrator Lore) Chambers, though, said city administrators have worked on the plan for more than a year. Ireton said he was loath to announce the effort during the election season out of concern it would be criticized as a self-serving campaign ploy.

It should be noted that Ireton’s plan for downtown redevelopment was released two years ago. Some members of the business community are skeptical that this “customer-service” approach has been in the works for over a year. One local business owner, who asked that his name be withheld, stated, “I can’t believe that the mayor expects us to believe that it took a year to put some forms together. No one, certainly not the mayor, talked about treating businesses as customers until Joe Albero decided to run against him.”
Ireton will present his plan in the lobby of the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce at 1:30 PM today.
This post originally appeared in the DelMarVa Observer.

Can North Carolina Declare An “Official” Religion?

North Carolina legislators made national headlines last week with a bit of high-profile religious extremism. They introduced a resolution declaring that the state has the right to declare an official religion – presumably Christianity. The bill also contended that states are “sovereign” and that federal courts cannot prevent states “from making laws respecting the establishment of religion.”

The North Carolina bill—which appears to be dead for now—was one of two big church-state blow-ups last week. In Tennessee, legislators withdrew a school voucher bill that would have allowed parents to direct taxpayer money to private schools, including Christian academies. The reason they balked: it suddenly occurred to them that the bill would also allow parents to direct tax dollars to Islamic schools.

Joel Osteen is quitting his church and abandoning his Christian faith, according to an elaborate Internet hoax targeting the Texas megapastor.

Osteen, the very visible face of the Lakewood Church in Houston since 1999, is, in reality, not quitting, despite several phony websites, news stories and even a YouTube video declaring otherwise.
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Majority Of Americans Support Legalization Of Marijuana

Public support for legalizing marijuana has never been higher, but the latest studies show recreational use is linked with prescription drug misuse.

In the latest nationwide survey [PDF] of 1,501 people polled in mid-March about legalizing marijuana, 52% of those surveyed favored making weed legal, and 72% said that efforts to enforce anti-marijuana laws bring more cost than benefit.

The poll, conducted by the Pew Research Center, also tracked trends in public support for legalization, which has risen dramatically since 1969, when a Gallup poll found only 12% in favor.

White House: Planned GOP Gun Filibuster Cowardly

Beginning a week of high pressure on gun control, the White House on Monday accused some Republican senators of cowardice for planning to filibuster gun legislation without allowing the full Senate to vote on President Obama’s initiatives.

“If they oppose this legislation, have the courage to say so on the floor and vote no,” said White House press secretary Jay Carney. “Don’t block it. Don’t hide behind a procedural action to prevent a vote. That’s the wrong thing to do, and that’s how the president clearly feels.”

He didn’t name names, but Mr. Carney said when Mr. Obama announced his gun-control proposals in his State of the Union address in February, members of both parties stood and applauded “when the cameras were on.”
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Drop the I-Word: In Victory for Advocates, Associated Press Stops Using Phrase "Illegal Immigrant"

Mexican Workers Win Ownership Of Tire Plant With Three-Year Strike

“If the owners don’t want it, let’s run it ourselves.” When a factory closes, the idea of turning it into a worker-owned co-operative sometimes comes up—and usually dies.

The hurdles to buying a plant, even a failing plant, are huge, and once in business, the new worker-owners face all the pressures that helped the company go bankrupt in the first place. Most worker-owned co-ops are small, such as a taxi collective in Madison or a bakery in San Francisco.

But in Mexico a giant-sized worker cooperative has been building tires since 2005. The factory competes on the world market, employs 1,050 co-owners, and pays the best wages and pensions of any Mexican tire plant.

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KFC Original Recipe Chicken Going Boneless To Make It Easier To Eat

What’s the worst thing about fast food chicken? It’s just sodifficult to eat, of course, with all those crunchy bones getting in the way. That’s why KFC is making over its Original Recipe Chicken and offering up a bucket of deep-fried boneless chicken pieces for those who can’t navigate the sharp world of breasts, thighs and drumsticks.

The new menu choice will show up on menus on April 14, reports the Associated Press, and the company says it may eventually push the bone-in version off the board forever.

The move comes as Americans persist in our desire to snack conveniently and often on the go. KFC notes that almost four out of five servings of fried chicken in the country are boneless. Pretty sure there are plenty of grandmas out there sniffing indignantly right about now.

GOVERNOR O’MALLEY, SENATE PRESIDENT MILLER, HOUSE SPEAKER BUSCH SIGN LEGISLATION FOCUSED ON JOBS AND OPPORTUNITY

ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 9, 2013) – Governor Martin O’Malley, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr, House Speaker Michael E. Busch, joined by Lieutenant Governor Anthony G. Brown, today signed important legislation that will create jobs and expand opportunity for more Marylanders. Among the bills signed into law today are the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013, the Employment Advancement Right Now (Earn) initiative, the Public-Private Partnerships bill, and an expansion of the Biotechnology, Research & Development, and Film Production Tax Credits - all of which work to advance job creation, spur innovation, and expand opportunities for Marylanders to compete in a changing 21st century economy.

The O’Malley-Brown Administration set a goal to recover every job lost during the Bush recession by the end of 2014. To date, Maryland has recovered nearly 95 percent of those jobs. Over the last 12 months, the state has now created 38,200 new jobs with the private sector leading the way – creating 95 percent of those new jobs. Today, Maryland’s unemployment rate , while still too high, has been driven down to its lowest level in four years – 6.6 percent – 14 percent below the national rate.

“There is no progress without a job. Maryland has now recovered nearly 95 percent of the jobs lost during the Bush recession, but there are still too many moms and dads out of work. Thanks to the hard work of Senate President Miller, House Speaker Busch and our leaders in the General Assembly, together, we have passed meaningful legislation that focuses on creating jobs and expanding opportunity with a balanced, fiscally responsible approach,” said Governor O’Malley. “Because of the better choices we’ve made, we’ve been able to deliver better results this session to expand the ranks of an increasingly diverse and upwardly mobile middle class.”

“The most important thing we did this session was to create a legacy for the future of our State that will ensure that Maryland continues to have the best educational system in the country and the transportation infrastructure to support a thriving knowledge-based economy,” said Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr.

“This session, much of the unsung legislation passed was focused on stimulating private sector job creation in Maryland,” said Speaker Michael E. Busch. “Funding for TEDCO's Rural Business Initiative and a new innovation portal for the State, as well as expanding Public-Private Partnerships, tax credits and tax increment financing options will help give the business community the continued confidence to invest in Maryland's economy.”

The Governor and presiding officers signed into law the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013, which creates a mechanism to incentivize the development of a 200 MW offshore wind facility that will support almost 850 manufacturing and construction jobs for five years and an additional 160 ongoing supply and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) jobs thereafter.

Championed by Lt. Governor Brown, the Administration’s public-private partnership (P3) bill creates an enhanced framework for future P3s that will attract private investment to help build new infrastructure in Maryland with the potential to support thousands of jobs in the future.

“As a result of this legislation we're going to create thousands of jobs for Maryland’s workers, address some of our most pressing infrastructure needs, and continue to strengthen and support our state’s businesses,”said Lt. Governor Brown. “Public-private partnerships are going to be an essential part of building a growing 21st Century Maryland economy, and this legislation allows us to approach these partnerships in a more transparent, predictable and efficient way.”

A joint effort with Senate President Miller and House Speaker Busch, Governor O’Malley’s FY 2014 budget includes a $4.5 million strategic investment to create the EARN initiative, a competitive grant process that creates employer-driven collaborations to bridge the gap between specific employer workforce needs and the skills of Maryland’s workers to identify common workforce needs for high-demand occupations within a target industry such as construction, traditional and advanced manufacturing, cyber security, and health care; and develop and implement education or training strategies to address those shortages.

The Governor and presiding officers also signed an expansion of three existing tax credits: the Research and Development Tax Credit by 25 percent to $8 million to spur additional investment in Maryland companies; the Biotechnology Tax Credit by $2 million to $10 million to encourage investment in Maryland’s biotechnology industry; and the Film Production Tax Credit to increase investment in Maryland's film industry. The FY 2014 budget also includes the creation of a new $3 million Cyber Tax Credit to advance Maryland’s rapidly growing cyber sector.

Since taking office, the Administration has cut more spending than any administration in Maryland history - more than $8 billion since 2007; preserved more than $1 billion in cash reserves between the fund balance and the Rainy Day Fund - larger than 41 other states in the nation; and with the FY 2014 budget passed by the legislature, Maryland is now on the verge of nearly eliminating the long-standing $1.7 billion structural deficit inherited in 2007.

Senate Approves Compromise On Pit Bull Legislation

With just a few hours left in the 2013 Maryland General Assembly session, one of the most contentious issue left for lawmakers to consider has to deal with liability for dog bite cases.

The debate follows a Maryland Court of Appeals decision last year, that automatically held pit bull owners legally responsible if their dogs attack someone.

The House and Senate approved separate bills to apply to all dogs.

Now a House-Senate Conference Committee has reached a compromise.
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CRINGE-INDUCING: MSNBC HOST USES YOUNG DAUGHTER TO PUSH GAY MARRIAGE, ASKS HER IF SHE’D ‘MARRY A GIRL’

Regardless of where you stand on the issue of gay marriage, few will likely agree with MSNBC host Krystal Ball’s decision to use her young daughter to promote gay marriage during a segment titled “Political Playground” on Thursday.

“What if you were in love with a girl? Would you marry a girl?” Balls asks her daughter.

The little girl seems to be well versed in New York law, as she replies by saying girls can marry girls and boys can marry boys in New York but not in other places.

“And that’s good because you want people to be able to marry who they are in love with, right?” Ball nudged.

Ball went on to explain how “strange” it was that other states haven’t decided to allow gay marriage.

“They should change that, shouldn’t they?” Ball says.

Watch the entire segment via MSNBC below:

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Md. General Assembly Passes Bill To Help Veterans

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- A measure to help veterans as they transition to the civilian workforce in Maryland has cleared the General Assembly.

Lawmakers gave final passage to the bill Monday. The measure is supported by Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, who is a colonel in the U.S. Army reserves and Gov. Martin O'Malley's administration.

The bill removes certain barriers to employment when veterans make the transition from military service to the civilian workforce.
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BILL AYERS CONFIRMS WHAT OBAMA HAS DENIED

Weatherman domestic terrorist finally spills the beans
Weatherman domestic terrorist Bill Ayers is now confirming what the White House has previously denied – that he held a fundraiser in his living room for Barack Obama.

That 1995 meeting was said to have launched Obama’s political career.

In an October 2008 interview on MSNBC host Chris Matthews’ show, Robert Gibbs, a spokesman for Obama’s presidential campaign, categorically denied the fundraiser was ever held.

Matthews asked Gibbs: “Did [Ayers] have a fundraiser for [Obama], or not?”

Gibbs, who would become the White House spokesman, replied: “No, he did not have a fundraiser for our candidate as he said ten seconds ago.”

Uncle Jack

The 8th Air Force suffered 30,000 airmen lost or missing during WWII—more casualties than the Navy and Marines combined. Only one airman in three survived the air battle in Europe . If you were lucky enough to survive 30 missions (like Uncle Jack), you became a member of the "Lucky Bastards Club."

If you have a sharp eye, you may have noted that the B-17 in the video is a late model that had a remote controlled gun turret in the nose rather thantwo manually operated 50 cal machine guns.

Let us never forget what Uncle Jack and these brave men did for our country.

Gary is one of a few actors who has supported the troops and done a lot for veterans.

Support him.

This is great! Sit back and relax and enjoy a piece of American history.

It may even bring a tear or two to your eyes.

Wish we had more people in the entertainment industry like Gary Sinise.

"Uncle Jack" featuring Gary Sinise and his uncle:

http://www.sleepingdogtv.com/reel/Uncle-Jack.aspx

Crab Harvest Off To a Late Start This Season

It's a slower-than-normal start to Maryland's crab season.

"That's Mother Nature for you," said 'Captain' Trey Bernhardt, owner of Captain Trey's, Cockeysville. "Crabs don't move or trap when it's below 50 degrees. Once it gets above 50 degrees, they start moving around and feeding."

April 1 was the start of crab season in Maryland.

Bernhardt said he's still getting crab in from warmer climates.
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Man's Best Friend?

Maryland Gov. Didn't Know What Gun Laws Were On The Books

Maryland governor Martin O'Malley, a possible Democratic candidate for president in 2016, just passed a very strict gun law, which includes a so-called assault weapons ban. But what's especially interesting is that before the December shooting at a school in Connecticut, Governor O'Malley had no idea what the gun laws were in his state.
On the day after a gunman killed 20 children in Newtown, Conn., Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley wrote a text messageto his chief legislative lobbyist.

“Do we or do we not have an assault-weapons ban?” the governor asked that Saturday, 10 days before Christmas.

No, Stacy Mayer wrote back.

Really? the governor responded. I thought we did.

A variety of pistols, such as mini-Uzis , were illegal. But the weapon that Adam Lanza had fired in Newtown — the semiautomatic Bushmaster rifle?

Legal in Maryland.

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O'Malley Gets Everything He Wants From Lawmakers

Governor Martin O’Malley says the 2013 Session of the Maryland General Assembly has been one of the most productive of his term with lawmakers approving nearly all of his agenda, including a gas tax increase, gun control and a repeal of the death penalty.

As of 9 p.m. Monday, all 30 bills the governor proposed this year passed both the House of Delegates and the Maryland Senate.

"This is one of the more orderly final days of the legislative session that I have ever witnessed, and that's a tribute to the men and women of the General Assembly, and the goodness of the people that they represent," O'Malley told WBAL News in a one-on-one interview in his office.
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The Country Is Over

Data are hard to deal with when your vision is on the wrong side of it. Those wanting to claim there is a recovery underway are having just this problem. These people either have no understanding of economics or they believe falsely that they can inflate “animal spirits” with their hyped reports and that will initiate a recovery.

There will not be an economic recovery given the economic policies of this country. A recovery is not unlikely, I would argue it is closer to impossible if not impossible. The reasons for this position are not complicated. In short, the nation has become an out-of-control welfare state that is rapidly destroying the incentives to work or create jobs. Government policies appear designed toward this end. One doesn’t need a high IQ or an advanced degree in economics to understand the problems.

There are innumerable factors responsible for the decline of the US. Only three important ones will convey why the economy is dying:

1. The rule of law and property rights are under attack.

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GOVERNOR O'MALLEY, SENATE PRESIDENT MILLER, HOUSE SPEAKER BUSCH TO SIGN LEGISLATION FOCUSED ON JOBS AND OPPORTUNITY

ANNAPOLIS, MD – TODAY at 10:30 a.m., Governor O’Malley, Senate President Miller and House Speaker Busch, joined by Lt. Governor Brown, will hold a bill signing highlighting the Administration’s agenda to create jobs and expand opportunity for more Marylanders.

Bills to be signed include the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013, Public-Private Partnerships, and the Employment Advancement Right Now (EARN) initiative.

For a full list of bills to be signed, click here. The bill signing will be streamed live here.

The Original E-Mail Sent From Bongino Camp Yesterday

Bongino Announces Gubernatorial Bid - Selects Alan Keyes as Running

Bongino Announces Campaign for Governor
Selects Alan Keyes as running mate

Contact: Karla Graham
(410) 927-4577
Karla@bongino.com

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Dan Bongino is proud to announce the launch of a campaign for Governor of Maryland. The former secret service agent and U.S. Senate candidates stated,“For too long we've let the Democrats in Annapolis trample on our God-given rights and wage war on our family finances. With this announcement everything changes. People of Maryland, take notice – from here on out we cede no ground and we will never give you up. The fight is on and defeat is not an option.”

The campaign is also announcing that Ambassador Alan Keyes will be serving as Mr. Bongino's running mate. “I couldn't ask for a better running mate than Ambassador Keyes," said Mr. Bongino. “He has a lengthy track record of speaking truth to power and working on behalf of limited government, individual liberty, and family values.”Ambassador Keyes added “I'm incredibly excited by this opportunity to work with Dan and help stop the communistic take-over of the great state of Maryland.”

According to Campaign Manager Hillary Pennington, this gubernatorial campaign is going to change how Maryland campaigns are run. “We've learned key lessons from the senate campaign, but we aren't abandoning our roots either. This is still a campaign by and for the grassroots, without any unwanted input from so-called political consultants.”

Dan Bongino, a devoted husband and father, served in the United States Secret Service for more than a decade, in which he was assigned to the elite Presidential Protective Division. He represented the U.S. as a lead government security official in over 25 countries. Holding graduate degrees in Business Administration and Psychology, Dan has gone on to start several successful businesses in Maryland. As an entrepreneur, he understands the role small businesses play in establishing a framework for continued prosperity and economic growth.

You can follow Mr. Bongino's campaign at bongino.com; on Facebook at facebook.com/dan.bongino; on Twitter @danbongino and Alan Keyes @loyaltoliberty