Transgender Americans Face Complicated Medical Problems, Issues Accessing Care

When it comes to clinics for women’s health, who counts as a woman? When it comes to breast cancer screenings funded by the CDC, there’s a requirement that advocates for transgender Americans find discriminatory and problematic: patients must be “born as women,” excluding women who were born as men but who need services like mammograms. Routine health care can become very complicated, and accessing public health services is too.

ProPublica presents to us the case of a 62-year-old Colorado woman who had a common enough problem for women in late middle age: A fast-growing lump in her chest and no health insurance. She qualified for a state-run women’s health services program that funds mammograms for low-income people. Great! Except funding for the program comes from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and 1990′s Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Prevention Act restricts these funds to people who were identified as female at birth.

To state the obvious, women who are transgender can get breast cancer. All humans can get breast cancer, actually, and should be aware of unusual changes in their chest tissue.

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McDonald’s McResource Help Line Tells Worker How To Get Welfare Benefits

No One Bids To Build Solar Plants On Colorado Public Lands

Well, this is awkward. An auction in Colorado for the right to build solar energy plants produced no bids, according to the Denver Post.

"We are going to have to regroup and figure out what didn't work," Maryanne Kurtinaitis, renewable energy program manager for the federal Bureau of Land Management’s Colorado office told the Post.

But Ken Borngrebe, environmental permitting manager for First Solar, said the problem likely had to do with market uncertainties surrounding solar projects.
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FDA Still Looking For Answers To Animal Deaths

Stumped experts at the Food and Drug Administration are appealing to pet owners for help. FDA veterinarians haven't found the cause of a poison thought to be in pet jerky made in China. The FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine has run more than 1,200 tests and visited manufacturing plants in China, but to no avail. Testing is complicated because the poison may have come from the facility or been picked up en route to its destination. Scientists have to know what they're looking for to test for it. About 580 dogs are thought to have died from the mysterious poison over the past six years. Some advocates say the government needs to do more testing and impose stricter guidelines on labeling of imports. If only part of a product is from China and it is put together here, labels don't have to say "Made in China," he said.

Cute Static Dog Spreading Positive Energy!

Even Democrats Want Obama To Fire Company Responsible For HealthCare.gov

Leading contractors responsible for the government's trouble-plagued health insurance website are saying the Obama administration shares responsibility for snags that have crippled the system. CGI Federal built the federal HealthCare.gov website serving 36 states. Quality Software Services, Inc. designed a backroom operation for verifying applicants' income and other personal details. Executives from both companies plan to tell the House Energy and Commerce Committee, last-minute requests from federal officials and intense consumer demand are to blame for the technical glitches. The hearing comes as even some Democrats suggest President Barack Obama needs to fire the people responsible for the site's problems. The White House says it plans to push back the deadline for applying for health insurance without risk of a penalty. The new date would be at the end of March. And Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has met with leaders of 14 insurance companies to discuss forming new technical teams to help fix the website. Sebelius is expected to testify on Capitol Hill next week.

Unexpected Payday

Today is an unexpected payday for some federal employees. In an email to staff, IRS Acting Commissioner Danny Werfel says IT and HR employees worked over the weekend so paychecks could come four days earlier than scheduled. They should include back pay for the shutdown. The Washington Post reports, Customs and Border Protection has also moved payday up to today. Many of its employees had to work throughout the shutdown, with no guarantee of a paycheck. Employees will get half of the shutdown pay today, with the rest to come Monday with their regular paycheck. The Social Security Administration last week announced it was rushing backpay to employees. They should have already received it.

Former Guantanamo Detainee Was On Ground In Benghazi During Terror Attack, Source Says

A former Guantanamo Bay detainee with Al Qaeda ties was in Benghazi the night of the Sept. 11 attack, according to a source on the ground in Libya.

The source told Fox News that ex-detainee Sufian bin Qumu, who is suspected of running camps in eastern Libya where some of the assailants trained, is also a "respected member" of Ansar al-Sharia -- one of the Islamist groups identified in State Department email traffic two hours after the attack.

Two sources familiar with the investigation, when asked about bin Qumu's whereabouts the night of the attack, did not dispute the claim he was in Benghazi
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October US Manufacturing Output Tumbles To 2009 Levels

While hardly as followed as the other two key US manufacturing indices, the Mfg ISM and the Chicago PMI, the recently introduced Markit PMI, which comes from the same firm that tracks manufacturing data across the rest of the world, shows that in addition to the sliding job picture in September (and soon October), one other aspect of the US economy that took a big hit in October was manufacturing. As Markit just reported, "the U.S. manufacturing sector grew at its weakest pace for a year in October... based on approximately 85% of usual monthly survey replies. The flash PMI index registered 51.1, down from 52.8 in September, and was consistent with only a modest rate of expansion." Not only was this the lowest headline print in one year, and should the drop continue it would be the worst print since 2009, not only was the New Order index had its weakest number in 6 months, but worst of all, the Output index, plunging from 55.3 to 49.5, had its first contrationary print since 2009!

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HOW TO OPT OUT OF OBAMACARE WITHOUT PAYING THE FINE

Less than two-hours ago, I submitted a revised W-4 form to our payroll department. My goal is to avoid being in a position where at the end of next year I am owed a refund from the federal government. As an act of civil disobedience, I am refusing to purchase health insurance. This means that I am subject to a tax/fine of 1% of my income (2% the following year, 2.5% thereafter). But the beautiful thing is that unless I am owed a tax refund, the government will never get any of that money.

My decision to not purchase health insurance is a decision a lot of people -- possibly millions -- are going to make, either out of protest, or once the ObamaCare site is up and running and they finally get a look at the increased cost of their monthly premiums under the Orwellian-named Affordable Care Act. Purely by coincidence, during his radio show today, Rush Limbaugh went into great detail about all of this:

Anyway, [my accountant] said to me that, according to the law, the only way that the government can collect the fine or penalty for you not buying insurance is if you are owed a tax refund. If you do not owe a tax refund, they cannot go into your bank account or anywhere else and get that money. Now, the sad thing is that most people file their taxes to get a refund 'cause they think they're screwing the government, and they're not. … 
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Obamacare Hot Line

Man Pleads Guilty In County’s Largest Pot Bust Ever

BERLIN — A New Jersey man arrested last December in what is believed to be the largest marijuana bust in Worcester County history pleaded guilty this week in U.S. District Court to one count of possession with intent to distribute and now faces up for 40 years in prison and a fine of up to $5 million.

Around 4:30 p.m. last Dec. 30, a Maryland State Police trooper in an unmarked car with its blue and red lights flashing was stopped on the shoulder of Route 113 just north of Germantown Rd. in Berlin. A short time later, a Toyota Sienna van driven by Donald Gayle, 54, of New Brunswick, N.J., passed the MSP trooper in the right lane and failed to move to the center lane in violation of the state’s recently passed “move over” law.
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BREAKING NEWS

10 year old male child run over by school bus in Berlin. Trooper 4 in route. More to come.

Why Men Wear Earrings

Did you ever wonder why earrings became so popular with men ?

A man is at work one day when he notices that his co-worker is wearing an earring.
The man knows his co-worker to be a normally conservative fellow, and is curious about his sudden change in "fashion sense"

The man walks up to him and says, "I didn't know you were into earrings."

"Don't make such a big deal, it's only an earring," he replies sheepishly.

His friend falls silent for a few minutes, but then his curiosity prods him to ask, "So, how long have you been wearing one ?"

"Ever since my wife found it in my truck."

(I always wondered how this trend got started)

OCtoberfest on the Beach October 26th & 27th

Street Address: Beach at North Division 
Street Phone: 443-971-1184
Location: Bayside Boardwalk/Inlet
Type: Family

FREE HALLOWEEN EVENTS FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY!

October 26-27

BEACH MAZE - Wicked witches, pirates of the sand, scary scarecrows, ghouls in the graveyard, zombies, and more await your arrival. Be there if you dare! 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

GREAT PUMPKIN RACE - It's a wacky and zany side-by-side race featuring wild and tricked out pumpkin race cars. Saturday, October 26, at 2 p.m., on N. Division Street (rain date October 27, 2 p.m.)
Source 

Bombshell: Federal Judge Suddenly Green-Lights Lawsuit That Could Stop Obamacare In Its Tracks

Small-business plaintiffs say the government is treating all 50 states the same even though Congress allowed them to opt out – and 36 did

The IRS is granting insurance subsidies to taxpayers in the 'refusenik' states, even though the text of the Obamacare law doesn't allow it
A federal judge denied the government's motion to dismiss the case on Tuesday

He also refused, however, to issue an injunction barring the Obama administration from implementing the law while the case moves forward

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Obama To Lift Ban on Libyans Working in U.S. Aviation

The Obama administration is secretly planning to lift a decades-long ban on Libyans coming to the United States to work in aviation maintenance, flight operations or train in nuclear science, according to an internal Homeland Security document.

Two federal lawmakers—Congressman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia and Jason Chaffetz of Utah—expressed outrage over the administration’s covert plan after obtaining a draft of the final regulation this week. Besides appearing on the State Department’s list of terrorist sponsoring nations for years, Libya is still a terrorism hotbed fresh in American minds after last fall’s Benghazi massacre.

Ambassador Christopher Stevens, the first diplomat to be killed overseas in decades, and three other Americans were murdered by Islamic militants in the September 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya. Judicial Watch has been a leader in investigating the Benghazi attack, filing a multitude of public records requests and litigation in federal court. Read JW’s two in-depth reports on Benghazi here and here.
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Feds Confiscate Investigative Reporter’s Confidential Files During Raid

A veteran Washington D.C. investigative journalist says the Department of Homeland Security confiscated a stack of her confidential files during a raid of her home in August — leading her to fear that a number of her sources inside the federal government have now been exposed.

In an interview with The Daily Caller, journalist Audrey Hudson revealed that the Department of Homeland Security and Maryland State Police were involved in a predawn raid of her Shady Side, Md. home on Aug. 6. Hudson is a former Washington Times reporter and current freelance reporter.

A search warrant obtained by The DC indicates that the August raid allowed law enforcement to search for firearms inside her home.

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WBOC Sports, "We Manufacture News"

Joe,
Not sure if you heard or not, but 1/2 of the Redskin team will be playing in Philly at 4pm, and the other 1/2 will be in Denver for a 4:20pm game.

David Copperfield - Flying

Crews Trying To Stop Raw Sewage Leak At The Mall

People are calling regularly to express just how bad it stinks at the Mall right now. All I can tell you is, don't call the Health Department unless you want to wait on hold. When Jimmy breaks away from his part time teaching job and finally gives permission to go forward with fixing it I'm sure you'll see/smell a difference then. 

BREAKING NEWS: 7.3-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off East Coast Of Japan

Japan issues tsunami advisory after 7.3-magnitude earthquake strikes off east coast of Honshu, Japan, USGS reports.

From Fox News

MD Doesn't Make the List on Global Ed Rankings

While Maryland's school system has had the top spot in a publication's annual ranking of the nation's schools for five years in a row, the state is far from the top of a new report comparing eighth-graders in the United States with other states and 38 other countries.

Massachusetts was the only state to score in a top rating in math in the study being released Thursday by the U.S. Education Department's National Center for Education Statistics. Only eight -states - Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Vermont and Wisconsin - scored in a top rating for science.

Researchers took eighth-grade test results in math and science from the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to predict performance on the international comparative study test known as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Nine states participated directly in TIMSS. NAEP includes scores of students tested with accommodations, while TIMSS does not. Statistical modeling was used to make up for the difference.
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Brew River Tomorrow Night

I.R.S. Guards

9 Smart Reasons To Rethink Your Retirement Plans

If anything has been a casualty of the Great Recession, it's America's traditional vision of retirement — clocking out at age 65 and settling into a condo in Florida.
Instead, workers today are coming to grips with the very realistic notion that they may work well into their 70s.

But is that really such a bad thing?

"For some people continuing to work is an economic necessity due to shrinking nest eggs and rising medical costs," Ken Budd, executive editor of AARP The Magazine, told Business Insider.

"As people not only live longer, but continue to feel healthy, why slow down? The rocking chair is out, entrepreneurship is in," says Budd. "Older Americans are driving much of the growth in new businesses. People want to feel productive, regardless of age."

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Millennials May Not Be Able To Retire Until Age 73

Today's college grads, carrying unprecedented student debt burdens, won’t be able to retire until age 73, according to a new study by personal finance site NerdWallet. That's 12 years later than the current average retirement age of 61.
In the last three decades, college enrollment has increased 11%, while tuition has shot up 200%, the report finds. That means members of the millennial generation are more likely to be saddled with loan payments that eat up their earnings and detract from their ability to save for retirement, pushing back their timelines for leaving the workforce. As NerdWallet's Joseph Egoian explains:

"Although the median college graduate leaves with a seemingly manageable $23,300 debt load, 7% of a student’s earnings go toward yearly loan payments of $2,858 for the first 10 years of his or her career. This prevents any meaningful contributions toward retirement. In fact, by the age of 33, when the typical college grad has finally paid off their standard 10-year loans, he or she can only be expected to have saved $2,466 for retirement — over $30,000 less than if the student had graduated with no debt.

"Even worse, the foregone savings carry a serious opportunity cost, as this money would have been earning a compounded rate of return every year until retirement. At the projected retirement age of 73, the lost savings directly attributable to student debt is $115,096, nearly 28% of total retirement savings."

In order to come out ahead, Egoian advises millennials to contribute more than the national average of 6% to their retirement accounts, choose an employer with a decent 401k match ($3,420 is the annual median), and invest in index tracking mutual funds to get high returns on their money.

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Baby Stick Figure Costume

Analysis: Audits Show Problems Have Plagued Md. Developmental Disabilities Admin. For Years

Officials at state agencies charged with helping people with disabilities often lament the enormous gap between the needs of people with disabilities and the resources Maryland has to help them.

Yet, in the latest of a series of critical audit reports of the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) going back 10 years, the legislative auditor describes extensive failures to collect millions of revenues from the federal government and local jurisdictions and systematic problems that led to chronic underbilling for federal government funds.

The audit also revealed:
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Sewer Spill At Boscov's

Walk Through Bethlehem

Lynnhaven Baptist Church of Pocomoke, Maryland, will be increasing their Walk Through Bethlehem event from five nights to six nights this year. This annual event will kick off Friday, December 13th and run through Sunday, December 15th with repeat performance the following weekend of December 20th through the 22nd. Over 15,000 people from all over the east coast have been through this indoor/outdoor event since its origination just a few years ago. Set, script and actors/actresses are different each year although the general flow is very similar. The little town of Bethlehem will be filled with town’s people and animals including a camel, horses, donkey’s, goats and sheep, chickens and more. The sand paved streets will be lit by torch fire-light on your guided tour through the night that Christ was born. Admission is free and opens at 6PM nightly.

Overproduction Of Soy Could Turn Argentine Soil To 'Sand'

Argentina's key resource, its agricultural soils, are being depleted by lack of crop rotation as soy farming encroaches on areas once used for corn, wheat and cattle grazing, according to local experts and a government source.
The loss of fertility is a slow-burning threat to crop yields at a time when importers are counting on the world's No. 3 corn and soybean supplier to increase output to help meet the boom in demand expected over the decades ahead.

The geopolitical stakes are high after Arab Spring and other uprisings were sparked in part by high food prices brought on by crop crises over recent years. Argentina is the top exporter of livestock feed to China, where an increasingly demanding middle class has come to expect a high protein diet of beef and pork.

On the Pampas farm belt, the trend toward soy at the expense of corn could rob Argentina of its natural advantage as an agricultural powerhouse in the decades ahead.

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9 More Banks Are Getting Probed By The DoJ On Matters That Led To JP Morgan Paying $13 Billion

(Reuters) - At least nine banks face probes by the U.S. Department of Justice into their sales of mortgage-backed securities as part of an effort by the task force that reached the $13 billion agreement with JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N>, the Financial Times reported.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said the banks include Bank of America Corp <BAC.N>, Citigroup Inc <C.N>, Credit Suisse Group <CSGN.VX>, Deutsche Bank <DBKGn.DE>, Goldman Sachs Group Inc <GS.N>, Morgan Stanley <MS.N>, Royal Bank of Scotland <RBS.L>, UBS <UBSN.VX>, and Wells Fargo & Co <WFC.N>.

Document requests and discussions between the banks and government have picked up recently after Eric Holder, the U.S. attorney-general, indicated publicly that more mortgage-backed security lawsuits were coming by the end of the year, the FT said.

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Former Victim-Witness Coordinator Faces 15 Years In Prison For Theft

A former Frederick football star who went to work five years ago at the county courthouse pleaded guilty Monday to stealing more than $20,000 intended for victims of crimes.

Leroy L. Ambush III pleaded guilty to the sole charge filed in Frederick County Circuit Court, theft scheme between $10,000 and $100,000.

The crime carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $15,000 fine.

At a sentencing hearing in November, State Prosecutor Emmet C. Davitt will recommend a six-month jail sentence with an additional 4 1/2-year suspended sentence.

Ambush, a graduate of Gov. Thomas Johnson High School and a former outside linebacker for the University of Maryland football team, began working as a victim-witness coordinator at the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office on June 16, 2008.
Davitt said Ambush stole restitution payments intended for crime victims on 56 occasions between Feb. 1, 2010, and March 19. The theft totaled about $20,700.

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GENERAL: OBAMA DANGEROUSLY WEAKENS U.S.

Warns nation 'extremely vulnerable' as readiness sinks to historically low levels
U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno shocked many Tuesday when he stated that just two Army brigades were currently combat-ready as a result of the financial toll taken by sequestration and other cuts in military spending, but a retired U.S. Air Force general says severe problems can be seen throughout all service branches.

“The Air Force, at one time, grounded a third of all their squadrons because of the cost savings driven by sequestration. That means their readiness is declining in almost dramatic terms,” said retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Tom McInerney, who served as both assistant vice chief of staff and commander in chief of U.S. Air Forces Europe during his time in uniform.

“The Navy is cutting down their steaming hours or flying hours and the Marine Corps the same thing,” he told WND. “They’re all about a third in decreased readiness, which permeates the whole force and you atrophy gradually. Without a doubt, the sequestration has had a huge impact, negative impact, on U.S. military readiness.”

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Raw Sewage Leak At Centre At Salisbury

There's been a raw sewage main break near Boscov's at the Centre at Salisbury.

Here's the kicker. The raw sewage is draining into the storm water drain and eventually going directly to the River.

When concerned citizens called the Health Department they were placed on hold for what we're told was 35 minutes and when they finally got back on the line they simply said they'd handle it.   

Viral Confessor to DUI Gets 6 1/2 Years in Prison

The Ohio man who confessed in a viral video that he killed a man while driving drunk was sentenced Wednesday to six-and-a-half years in prison and a lifetime suspension of his driver's license.

Dressed in a green prison uniform, 22-year-old Matthew Cordle addressed the Columbus, Ohio, courtroom before Judge David Fais handed down his sentence.

"Whatever my sentence may be, the true punishment is living," Cordle said.
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BLAZE SOURCES: OBAMA PURGING MILITARY COMMANDERS

Nine senior commanding generals have been fired by the Obama administration this year, leading to speculation by active and retired members of the military that a purge of its commanders is underway.

Retired generals and current senior commanders that have spoken with TheBlaze say the administration is not only purging the military of commanders they don’t agree with, but is striking fear in the hearts of those still serving.

The timing comes as the five branches of the U.S. armed forces are reducing staff due to budget cuts, and as U.S. troops are expected to withdraw from Afghanistan next year.

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BREAKING NEWS: GRAND JURY WANTED TO INDICT THE RAMSEYS

In 1999, Colorado grand jury wanted to indict JonBenet Ramsey’s parents for fatal child abuse, newly released court document says.

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TEXAS DAD NOT HAPPY AFTER HE SAYS SCHOOL SLAPPED HIS SON WITH IN-SCHOOL SUSPENSION FOR WEARING THIS ‘INTOLERABLE’ T-SHIRT

The litany of students getting in trouble for wearing T-shirts featuring images of guns continues, this time taking us down to Texas.

Andy Davidson told TheBlaze Wednesday he is proud his son stood up for his rights, choosing suspension instead of taking off a T-shirt that Davidson claims school officials found offensive.

The green shirt worn by Christian Davidson, an eighth-grade student at Spring Hill Middle School in Longview, Texas, had an eagle printed in yellow on the front with a Bible verse on the back, an American flag on the left sleeve and the apparently controversial words on the left.

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John McCain Confronted By Brave Man About US Support Of Radicals In Syria

NSA Monitored Calls Of 35 World Leaders After US Official Handed Over Contacts

• Agency given more than 200 numbers by government official
• NSA encourages departments to share their 'Rolodexes'
• Surveillance produced 'little intelligence', memo acknowledges

The NSA memo suggests that such surveillance was not isolated as the agency routinely monitors world leaders. Photograph: Guardian

The National Security Agency monitored the phone conversations of 35 world leaders after being given the numbers by an official in another US government department, according to a classified document provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

The confidential memo reveals that the NSA encourages senior officials in its "customer" departments, such the White House, State and the Pentagon, to share their "Rolodexes" so the agency can add the phone numbers of leading foreign politicians to their surveillance systems.
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Hogan On Eastern Shore - Responds To New Phosphorus Regulations

The O’Malley-Brown administration has submitted, for legislative approval, regulations that will have a sweeping effect on how Maryland’s already struggling farmers can manage their land. The proposed Phosphorus Management Tool is an intrusive regulation that will significantly impact how and when farmers can apply poultry manure fertilizer to their fields. Farmers have used poultry manure as fertilizer for years.
“It appears the O’Malley-Brown administration is not content with just restricting farmers’ property rights, but also insists on mandating how they use their property,” stated Larry Hogan, successful businessman and Change Maryland Founder. 
Secretary of Agriculture Buddy Hance told a meeting of farmers last week that his department has no idea what the economic impact of the new regulations would be for farmers until it is up and running. “It’s Obamacare for farmers,” Hogan said, “we have to pass it in order to see what’s in it.”
According to a University of Maryland survey conducted by the designers of the Phosphorus Management Tool, 61 percent of the farms surveyed would be impacted by the new regulation. Virgil Shockley, a Democratic member of the Worcester County Board of Commissioners and a farmer himself, estimated the new regulations would cost the Lower Shore $120 million.
The Phosphorus Management Tool is part of the O’Malley-Brown Watershed Implementation Plan, which also foisted the onerous ‘rain tax’ on Maryland home and business owners.
“We all want a clean and healthy Chesapeake Bay, not only for us but for our children and grandchildren,” said Hogan. “However, instead of focusing on workable solutions for all Marylanders, Governor O’Malley has chosen to pad his presidential resume by pandering to environmental special interest groups, and has placed burdensome regulations on our hard working farmers." 
Today and tomorrow, Hogan will be touring the Eastern Shore speaking to local farmers and local community leaders. The Eastern Shore is where the majority of Maryland’s farmland is located and where the proposed regulations will have the most devastating financial impact.

CITY COUNCIL AGENDA October 28, 2013 6:00 p.m.

Government Office Building Room 301

Times shown for agenda items are estimates only.

6:00 p.m. CALL TO ORDER

6:01 p.m. WELCOME/ANNOUNCEMENTS

6:03 p.m. INVOCATION/MEDITATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

6:05 p.m. CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION – Mayor James P. Ireton, Jr.

 Salisbury University Women’s Lacrosse Team

6:15 p.m. COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION PRESENTATION

 Stacey Weisner - Delmarva Zoological Society (DZS)

6:25 p.m. ADOPTION OF LEGISLATIVE AGENDA

6:28 p.m. CONSENT AGENDA – City Clerk Kim Nichols

 October 7, 2013 work session minutes

 October 7, 2013 closed session minutes (separate envelope)

 October 14, 2013 regular meeting minutes

 Resolution No. 2345 - appointing Lynne Pollitt Bratten to the Housing Board of Adjustments & Appeals for a term ending 8/31/2017

 Resolution No. 2346 - appointing Michael Ian Welker to the Friends of Poplar Hill Mansion Board of Directors for a term ending 10/31/2016

 Resolution No. 2347 – appointing David A. Plotts to the City Park Committee for a term ending 10/31/2016

6:35 p.m. AWARD OF BIDS – Internal Services Director Keith Cordrey 2

 Caprice Police Patrol Vehicles Contract 103-14

 Lease Services for Refuse Truck Contract RFP 01-14

 Purchase of Refuse Truck

 Waverly Drive Water Quality Inlets Contract 115-13

6:45 p.m. ORDINANCES – City Attorney Mark Tilghman

 Ordinance No. 2263 – 1st reading - approving an amendment of the FY14 General Fund budget to revise positions in the Internal Services Department

 Ordinance No. 2264 – 2nd reading – approving a budget amendment of the FY13 General Fund to appropriate funds received from the Speed Camera Program to purchase eight (8) Glock training handguns for simunitions training

Ordinance No. 2265 - 1st reading - amending Chapter 15.27 Property Maintenance Habitual Offender of the Salisbury Municipal Code. These amendments strengthen the original legislation by lowering the threshold by which a property owner can be designated a chronic nuisance property owner

 Ordinance No. 2266 - 1st reading – approving an amendment of the FY14 General Fund budget to adjust the City’s Pay Plan with new rates assigned to grades and steps

 Ordinance No. 2267 - 1st reading – approving an amendment of the FY14 General Fund budget to adjust position grade assignments

 Ordinance No. 2268 - 1st reading – approving an amendment of the FY14 General Fund, Water & Sewer Fund, and Parking Fund budgets to appropriate funds to cover increases in employee compensation

7:30 p.m.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

7:35 p.m.

ADJOURNMENT

It's The 2nd Worst Decade In Over 220 Years (And Getting Worse)

In 223 years, the average real GDP growth for the USA has been 3.8%. At 1.9%, the 2000-2010 decade was the 2nd worst decade for real GDP growth in the storied history of the United States. The worst since 1790 was the 1930s which was followed by what many hope for now, an explosion of growth that occurred in the 1940s. However, three years in, real GDP growth for the 2010-> decade does not look as good as 'hope' would like it to be. So what is different this time and what 'facilitated' the 1940s recovery? The sad, but very real, truth is... war... but funding that this time will be problem...

The 2nd worst decade of growth for the US ever... and getting worse

More

Obamacare Pitch Of The Day: Baltimore Ravens Paid $130k To Promote "Affordable Care"

In a “Sponsorship Agreement” between the Maryland Health Connection and the Ravens, Judicial Watch reports that the state (read taxpayers) will pay the Super Bowl champs $130,000 to push Obamacare on television, radio, the team’s official website, its newsletter and in social media. If Obamacare is the great thing that we are constantly reassured it to be, why are we seeing the administration feeling the need to constantly market, pitch, and sell the idea by any means possible (from keg standing college students  to Superbowl shuffles)?

Of course, they may be on to something with this one...

MORE

Surplus Might Fund Salisbury Employee Raises

SALISBURY — City employees in Salisbury will likely be getting a raise to be paid for directly out of the city’s surplus, as the three members of the council in attendance at Monday’s work session unanimously agreed to advance the idea to their next legislative session.

The City Council also further discussed pay raises for elected officials and whether it would be easier to spread them out regularly as opposed to the current large but occasional leap.

There has been more or less universal agreement on the council that city employees are in need of a raise, especially following the recent results of a pay study by Evergreen Solutions, LLC that found Salisbury employees well below their neighbors in multiple compensation categories. Where the money will come from for that citywide pay bump, though, has been a matter of debate. Initially, the administration proposed new revenue additions like taking over fire inspections in Salisbury from Wicomico County as well as some cost deferrals on projects like the Riverwalk renovation.
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UVA PROFESSOR: We Cannot Rule Out A Conspiracy To Kill John F. Kennedy

It's not just crackpots who question the conventional wisdom that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone when he killed President John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963.
University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato, author of "The Kennedy Half-Century: The Presidency, Assassination, and Lasting Legacy of John F. Kennedy" argues that "the chance of some sort of conspiracy involving Oswald is not insubstantial."

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Thank God Its Friday 10-25-13

What will you be doing this weekend?

Having Fun With Statues 10-25-13

EPA Regs Shut Down 60-Year Old Utah Coal Plant

One of Utah’s oldest power plants is slated to close next year due to costly Environmental Protection Agency regulations limiting mercury emissions from coal plants.

The Carbon Power Plant’s location inside a narrow canyon doesn’t give plant operators enough room to install the necessary pollution control technology required by the EPA. Therefore the plant will have to be closed and 74 workers will lose their jobs.

“The way rules are being crafted there is a regulatory environment that will cause a transition away from coal because of air-quality concerns,” said Dave Eskelsen, spokesman for Rocky Mountain Power — the utility that runs the plant. “But that transition is going to be reasonably gradual. We expect to be able to operate our coal plants to the end of their regulatory lives.”

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SFD Calls For Service 10-24-13

• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 23:33:43 Nature: Subject Fallen City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 22:36:21 Nature: Pro Qa Ems City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 20:38:43 Nature: Pi Accident Address: Cherry St and n Salisbury Blvd Salisbury, MD 21801
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 17:54:41 Nature: Seizure City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 17:45:45 Nature: Pi Accident City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 16:26:55 Nature: Pi Accident City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 16:03:06 Nature: Petroleum Spill Address: Old Ocean City Rd and old Hobbs Rd Salisbury, MD 21802
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 15:38:59 Nature: Pi Accident City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 15:30:43 Nature: Pi Accident Address: Old Ocean City Rd and phillip Morris Dr Salisbury, MD 21801
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 15:30:35 Nature: Pi Accident City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 14:54:03 Nature: Abdominal Pain City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 12:34:07 Nature: Non Breathing City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 11:52:37 Nature: Subject Fallen City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 09:55:54 Nature: Sick Subject City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 05:48:27 Nature: Difficulty Breathing City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 02:36:08 Nature: Sick Subject City: Salisbury
• Thursday October, 24 2013 @ 00:02:42 Nature: Automatic Alarm Address: 803 N Salisbury Blvd Salisbury, MD 21801

Emails: White House, State Department Coordinated With Journalist On National Security Leaks

White House and State Department officials cooperated extensively on background with a New York Times journalist during the period that he broke confidential national security information in a series of leaks that prompted outrage from lawmakers, according to unearthed 2011 and 2012 emails.

The nonprofit organization Freedom Watch, which obtained the internal State Department emails through a Freedom of Information Act request, believes that the Obama administration carried out the leaks to bolster a tough image for itself on Iran.

Then-Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Michael Hammer and other State Department employees arranged background interviews between New York Times chief Washington correspondent David Sanger and State Department officials between December 2011 and March 2012 for Sanger’s 2012 book “Confront and Conceal: Obama’s Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power.”

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Health Connection Bus To Visit Eastern Shore Towns

Somerset County Outreach Event (ConnecTour)
October 25 @ 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Somerset County District Court
12155 Elm St. Princess Anne, MD 21853 United States + Google Map


Worcester County Outreach Event (ConnecTour)
October 26 @ 11:00 am - 3:00 pm
Home Depot
11408 Ocean Gateway Berlin , MD 21811 United States


Kent County Outreach Event (ConnecTour)
October 28 @ 12:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Fountain Park High
Cross St. Intersection Chestertown, MD 21620 United States+ Google Map
Source 

Yard Sale 10-25-13

Multi-Family Yard Sale This Saturday
October 26, 2013

7am - untilWhitesville Rd in Delmar/Laurel, DE
Directions:
3.1 miles north of MD/DE state line on Rt 13, make right onto Whitesville Rd/Rt 30 East, second house on left/half-mile.Items for sale will include:
Baby/Toddler Clothing & Shoes
New With Tags Women's Clothing (L & XL Tops/Sweaters, M-XL Pants, Size 12/Tall Pants)
DVDs/TV Series DVD Sets
Books
Kitchen Items
Various Household Items
Glassware/Collectibles
Jewelry
VS/Bath & Body Works Shower Gels, Perfumes& Much More

YARD SALE
CARRIAGE LANE/OFF RIVERSIDE DRIVE
SALISBURY, MD 21801
OCT. 26, 2013, SAT.- 7:30 am TILL noon.

Washington