Citizens Encouraged to Be Informed & Know Your Zone/Division In Advance Of Storm

OCEAN CITY, MD – : Ocean City Emergency Services is continuing to monitor the projected path of Hurricane Joaquin. Currently, effects of the storm are expected to be in the Ocean City area beginning Friday, October 2. High winds and large amounts of rain are likely, even before the storm’s arrival, which may lead to flooding.

Town of Ocean City staff is beginning preparations for the impending storm and completing pre-storm action items. In addition, many outdoor events for the weekend have been canceled or postponed in advance of the weather, including Wine on the Beach and the OPA National Championship Power Boat Races.

Before, during and after the storm, the Town of Ocean City will be posting storm related information on various websites, social media outlets and through the Emergency Alert system. In an effort to keep citizens informed with the most updated and accurate information, the Town of Ocean City will be posting storm related information on the following outlets:

• City Wide Emergency Alerts: Citizens can sign up for emergency alerts by visiting: http://oceancitymd.gov/enews and subscribing to “City Wide Emergency Alerts.”
• Town of Ocean City Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TownOfOceanCity
• Town of Ocean City Twitter: @townofoceancity
• Town of Ocean City website: www.oceancitymd.gov
• FM Advisory Radio Station – 99.5
• Town of Ocean City Access Channels 4 & 15
• Emergency Management Hotline: 410-723-6666

The Town of Ocean City’s Emergency Services personnel will be working closely with local and state representatives to provide citizens with timely, accurate and essential information before, during and after the storm. Citizens are encouraged to Know Your Zone and Division and be prepared for any impact the storm may have on Ocean City. To begin preparing, citizens should build an emergency kit and make a family communications plan.  For more information regarding storm preparedness, please visit:http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes.

SHOCKING! New Army patch looks just like the Muslim Brotherhood patch

ARMY TIMES  (h/t Rae R) All told, there are about 3,335 troops in the region training Iraqi troops, providing security and conducing bombing missions on Islamic State targets in Iraq and neighboring Syria. (Which have done virtually nothing to stop the spread of the Islamic State)

The Army’s patch features crossed scimitars, a palm wreath and stars. The scimitars, short swords with curved blades, are meant to symbolize the twin goals of the U.S.-led (Operation Inherent Resolve) coalition: to defeat the Islamic State, also referred to as ISIS, and to restore stability in the region, according to Army documents.

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Statins: Heart disease drug speeds up ageing process, warns new research

"STATINS make regular users become older faster, leaving them open to long-term mental and physical decline"

Scientists have found the heart disease drug badly affects our stem cells, the internal medical system which repairs damage to our bodies and protects us from muscle and joint pain as well as memory loss.

Last night experts warned patients to “think very carefully” before taking statins as a preventative medicine.

A GP expert in the field said: “They just make many patients feel years older. Side effects mimic the ageing process.”

The new research by scientists at Tulane University in New Orleans has reignited the debate about statin side effects which many doctors say have been played down.

They include memory loss, muscle pain, diabetes, cataracts, liver dysfunction, diabetes, fatigue and memory loss.

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'In God We Trust' police chief tells off angry atheists

A North Texas police chief has a message for angry atheists who are upset over his department’s “In God We Trust” patrol vehicles: “Go fly a kite.”

Childress Police Chief Adrian Garcia began putting “In God We Trust” decals on vehicles Sept. 2. The decision infuriated Freedom From Religion Foundation Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor, who wrote a letter requesting the motto be removed from the department’s vehicles.

“After carefully reading your letter, I must deny your request in the removal of our nations [sic] motto from our patrol units, and ask that you and the Freedom From Religion Foundation go fly a kite,” Garcia responded on Monday, KCBD-11 reported. He shared a screenshot of his reply on the Childress Police Department’s Facebook page.

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Roger Stone: ‘Pets Killed, Tires Slashed, Threatening Phone Calls’ to Silence Bill Clinton’s Sexual Assault Victims

Long time political operative and strategist Roger Stone appeared on Breitbart News Sunday, broadcast on SiriusXM patriot radio channel 125, with Breitbart’s senior investigative political reporter Matt Boyle.

Stone who cut his political teeth working for Richard Nixon’s infamous Committee to Re-elect the President, later campaigned for Ronald Reagan, and until recently worked for Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, shared a few nuggets from his new book The Clintons’ War on Women, which he co-wrote with Robert Morrow.

Stone told Boyle that Hillary Clinton promoting herself as an advocate for women and children is hypocrisy. The author reminded Breitbart News Sunday listeners that as recently as last week Hillary spoke about the rape issue and that raped victims should be believed.

“Unfortunately, this doesn’t match her own history,” Stone pointed out. “She has been an enabler of rape. She has been the person to enable the serial rape and sexual assaults by her husband Bill Clinton. Some of which are known publicly: Paula Jones, Juanita Broaddrick, and Kathleen Willey.”

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OBAMA BRINGS 1,500 TERRORISTS TO U.S.

The Obama administration allowed 1,519 terror-stained foreign refugees into the U.S. last year because their crimes were allegedly committed “while under duress.”

The administration last year eased federal restrictions against terrorist activity for refugees and asylum seekers. Under the old rules, these 1,519 foreign nationals would have been banned from entering the country because they supported terrorist causes.

But under the new rules for vetting refugees, the secretary of Homeland Security has “discretionary authority” to waive certain cases of inadmissibility relating to terrorist activity.

A person could have provided shelter or sold a weapon to a terrorist, for instance, then claimed he did not know that the person being helped was a terrorist or that he was forced to provide the aid under duress.

“We’ve seen this discretionary authority abused in the last few years and, in fact, the administration has eliminated a zero-tolerance policy for granting asylum or residency to individuals who have provided any sort of terrorism-related support,” said a release from Judicial Watch Tuesday.
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Crony Capitalism the Cause of Society's Problems

Since the economic downturn of 2008, the critics of capitalism have redoubled their efforts to persuade the American people and many others around the world that the system of individual freedom and free enterprise has failed.

These critics have insisted that it is unbridled capitalism, set loose on the world, that is the source of all of our personal and societal misfortunes. We read and hear this not only in the popular news media and out of the mouths of the political pundits. We see it also in the election of a radical socialist to the leadership of the British Labor party and a self-proclaimed "democratic socialist" riding high in the public opinion polls for the Democratic Party's nomination to the U.S. presidency.

The first observation to make is that many if not most of the social and economic misfortunes that are most frequently talked about are not the product of "failed" free enterprise. The reason for this is that a consistently practiced free enterprise system no longer exists in the United States.

The Heavy Hand of Regulation

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ObamaCare repeal bill advances in House

The House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday advanced legislation that would repeal several major ObamaCare provisions through the fast-track process known as reconciliation.

“We're going to pass a bill that can dismantle ObamaCare and reach the president's desk,” said House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). “We’re going to repeal the five worst parts of the law: two mandates, two taxes and one board of bureaucrats.”

The measure would repeal ObamaCare’s individual and employer mandates for obtaining and providing insurance, along with two major taxes used to pay for the healthcare law: A 40 percent tax on high-cost health plans, called the “Cadillac Tax,” and a 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices.

It would also abolish a board charged with recommending Medicare cuts if spending rises above a certain level, called the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB).

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Home prices unexpectedly fall in July

Home prices fell 0.2% in July, according to the latest report from Case-Shiller.

Over the prior year, prices rose 5%.

Both of these reading were less than expected.

Expectations were for the report to show prices rose 0.1% in July compared to the prior month and rose 5.15% over the prior year.

The report showed that compared to the prior year, the largest increases were seen in San Francisco and Denver, where home prices rose more than 10%, while home prices in Dallas were up 8.7% from the prior year.

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Dems: Planned Parenthood fight will ‘never see the light of day in Annapolis’

The national debate over Planned Parenthood funding spread to Maryland on Tuesday as Democratic lawmakers rallied in Baltimore and issued a letter urging Gov. Larry Hogan to commit to continued funding for the organization.

The Baltimore demonstration was one of more than 200 “National Pink Out Day” events to take place at Planned Parenthood centers across the country in an effort to push back against hard-line conservatives who insist that Congress should defund the organization or else shut down the federal government.

Planned Parenthood, which performs abortions and provides an array of women’s health services such as cancer screenings, family planning and testing for sexually transmitted diseases, is at the center of a controversy over fetal-tissue harvesting.

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Kerry, Hillary, Kennedys Offer Sanctuary to ‘Refugees’ — In Your Town, Not Theirs

BOSTON – National Democrats have been vocal lately about their desire to resettle hundreds of thousands more “Syrian refugees” in the United States. Yet not one of these ostentatiously compassionate statesmen has offered any of the huddled masses yearning to breath free refuge on their own fabulously posh estates.

The list of multi-millionaire Democrats lecturing the American people on their “duty” is lengthy — Hillary Clinton, John Forbes Kerry, the Kennedys and former House speaker

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

9%

, among others.

Some big-city and university-town mayors have offered to allow the Arabs to settle in their communities. But the Democrats’ trust-funded grandees with their multiple vacation homes and private jets are conspicuous by their silence, even as they piously claim to feel the pain of the Syrian refugees — most of whom are neither Syrian nor refugees.

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Montgomery Co. Police: New Body Cameras Defuse Situations

ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP) — Montgomery County police say wearing body cameras has been beneficial despite some challenges.

Capt. Paul Liquorie says the cameras tend to de-escalate situations. Liquorie told the County Council’s Public Safety Committee that the cameras also give officers detailed looks at car crash scenes and are useful when collecting evidence in a hurry.

The cameras aren’t foolproof, though. When police are in a crowded or noisy area, the footage and audio can be disrupted by the shouts and bodies of others. In addition, people tend to leave investigation scenes when told they’re being recorded.

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BREAKING NEWS: House approves spending bill, averts government shutdown

House follows Senate in approving spending bill, sending it to Obama's desk and averting possible government shutdown.

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Holy Spit! This Guy’s a Congressman

Lawmaker rushes up to retrieve Holy See's magic spit following speech

Congressman Bob Brady, a strong pro-abortion and open border proponent, rushed up to the podium after Pope Francis’ speech to retrieve the Holy See’s magic spit.

Unfortunately all the holy water in the world wouldn’t be enough to wash the blood of hundreds of aborted babies from his hands.

View video HERE.

Flu Season Begins; CDC Estimates Up To 20% Will Get Sick

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A health warning. Doctors say they are already starting to see flu cases coming in! This after the flu reached epidemic levels last year.

Meghan McCorkell has more on the health warning.

The CDC predicts between five and 20% of people will get the flu—and they warn it’s time to get the vaccine now.

It’s a feeling no one wants, but flu season is back.

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ACLU Targeting Louisiana School Over Educator’s ‘God Bless You’ Greeting

“The United States Constitution requires public schools to ensure that state-supported activity is not used for religious indoctrination,” ACLU says

The ACLU of Louisiana is accusing a high school of promoting Christianity in an open letter on Friday because a student group hung prayer boxes and the principal ended an online letter with “May God Bless You All.”

Louisiana ACLU Executive Director Marjorie Esman said in a letter published by the Shreveport Times that Airline High School violated the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by allowing the Fellowship of Christian Athletes to set up prayer boxes that feature “Christian Symbols.” Esman’s letter also noted Principal Jason Rowland closed a September 2015 message to the school’s website with “The Future Starts Today – May God Bless You All.”

“The United States Constitution requires public schools to ensure that state-supported activity is not used for religious indoctrination,” the letter, which was addressed to superintendent D.C. Machen, states. It alleges that Rowland also “encouraged students to ‘pray to the Almighty God.’”

No official action will occur until the school board meets on Oct.1, but the claims addressed in the letter have already been placed on the meeting’s agenda, according to the Shreveport Times.

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Military in Maryland

Maryland plays a crucial role in our nation's defense and generates a $57.4 Billion economic impact. The state is a thriving location for Department of Defense related activities such as biodefense, cybersecurity, avionics, informatics and ordnance and weapons testing. 

Under the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process, Maryland added thousands of jobs, primarily at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Fort Meade, and the Naval National Medical Center at Bethesda. Maryland's 8,580 aerospace and defense businesses annually generate $32.82 billion in economic activity and secure $8.42 billion in federal contracts.​​

IS YOUR PHONE’S GPS PROTECTED BY THE FOURTH AMENDMENT?

Information may only be obtained pursuant to a warrant supported by probable cause

Should you be suspected of a crime, the state Court of Appeals – in an opinion released Tuesday – ruled law enforcement can discover where you are through your mobile phone location without needing to obtain a search warrant.

Indeed, according to the court, obtaining such information isn’t construed as a search.

A Raleigh police detective submitted a request to AT&T in December 2012 for information relating to the phone of a cooperating suspect in order to gather evidence on a perceived heroin trafficker who was heading from Charlotte to Raleigh.

According to the opinion, “On (Dec. 11), 2012, at approximately 4 p.m., Detective (M.K.) Mitchell received a record of a ‘hit’ from one of AT&T’s cell towers, which placed the phone within a few meters of the Red Roof Inn, located on South Saunders Street, near Interstate 40 in Raleigh. Detective Mitchell and other law enforcement officers from the Criminal Drug Enterprise Unit of the Raleigh Police Department began conducting surveillance from unmarked vehicles stationed around the Red Roof Inn.

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Grants proposed to make biking safer in Md.

WASHINGTON — Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has announced a series of grants to fund the design, construction and upgrades of bikeways and pedestrian trails throughout the state.

With the grants, more Bikeshare stations come to the suburbs, and Takoma Park and Wheaton will get grant money to add Bikeshare stations.

Bikeshare will be added in the Wheaton Central Business District. Takoma Park’s Langley Crossroads area will get a bikeshare dock, and another will pop up on New Hampshire Avenue.

Each dock will accommodate 15 bikes

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Editors Note:  The City Of Salisbury received $32,000 for signage and roadway improvements for Fitzwater Street design

WHAT RECOVERY? 9.4 MILLION MORE AMERICANS BELOW POVERTY LINE THAN PRE-CRISIS

Median earners were -8.1% worse off in 2011

According to Janet Yellen, we are still on pace to raise rates in 2015. While the rate hike was supposed to happen this month, it got derailed by the August market selloff, volatility in China, lackluster work force numbers, and a variety of other factors.

Despite the Fed continuing to kick this down the road, they continue to claim that we are in the middle of an ongoing recovery. There’s just one problem with that: things are getting worse than pre-crisis levels for millions of the poorest Americans.

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Trey Gowdy Grills Planned Parenthood President, Gets her to Admit she Supports Abortion by Gender and Race

There’s no one in Congress today more fun to watch than Rep. Trey Gowdy, because when this dude grills someone, you can guarantee by the end of his time, said individual will be a crispy critter with both biscuits thoroughly burned.

Gowdy recently got a chance to light up Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards’ world, and actually got her to admit she doesn’t have an issue with abortions being done to target race and gender.

This woman is truly sick and disturbed.

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School Asks Students For Number of Guns, Political Views Held by Family

"What are your parents' political views?" gun survey asks

“Does your family own any guns?” asks a high school survey reportedly sent to 100 students. “If so, how many?”

The gun survey given to journalism students at Hendrickson High School in Pflugerville, Texas, also asks students for their parents’ political views.

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The Future Of The U.S. Immigrant Population, In 1 Graphic

Here's something you probably knew: Asians have become the fastest-growing minority in this country.

Today, the Pew Research Center released a new analysis that shows that by 2055, Asians will pass Latinos as the largest immigrant group in the country.

Here's a graphic that shows past, present and projected future pivots in the country's immigrant population:

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PELOSI: INVESTIGATE GROUP BEHIND PLANNED PARENTHOOD VIDEOS, NOT ORGAN HARVESTING ALLEGATIONS

“I don't stipulate that these videos are real”

Nancy Pelosi admits she hasn’t seen any of the undercover Planned Parenthood sting videos, hours of footage which is alleged to show several high level clinic administrators discussing the trafficking and illegal sales of aborted baby parts.

Regardless, the house minority leader is certain those who released the videos, which she denies “are real,” are likely guilty of some infraction, and require an investigation into how they were “obtained” and “doctored,” even though the group behind the videos have released hours ofcompletely unedited footage.

Speaking to Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union Sunday, Pelosi toed the progressive liberal democrat line in defending Planned Parenthood when asked how she reconciles Pope Francis’ pro-life stance with her own pro-abortion views politically.

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Incredible Drone Footage Captures The Moment Two Huge Whales Approach A Paddle Boarde

We live in a fascinating world filled with tremendous beauty. Recently, a man on a paddle board was approached by two whales and the encounter was captured by a nearby drone. Thankfully, this encounter has been shared online for all to witness the beauty of God’s world.

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BREAKING NEWS: Kerry rejects Russia demand on Syria

Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking at the United Nations, rejects Russia's demand that U.S. warplanes stop operations in Syrian airspace -- but stops short of calling on Russia to halt its air campaign, instead urging the Kremlin to join the coalition against ISIS.

Lawsuit claims Del. State Police used excessive force against disabled couple

WILMINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union of Delaware announced Monday it had filed a federal lawsuit against the Delaware State Police over alleged excessive use of force against bystanders during the execution of a search warrant last year.

According to the ACLU, a Rehoboth Beach couple was allegedly subjected to excessive force during a police search on June 29, 2014, at a house where two other people were suspected of drug possession.

The ACLU claimed that Ruther and Lisa Hayes were detained and tormented by state police officers after two suspects were apprehended and the scene was secured. The suit noted that Ms. Hayes is a quadriplegic and Mr. Hayes a disabled veteran who suffers from schizophrenia.

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It’s Make Or Break Time For Jeb Bush

Jeb Bush is entering a critical phase of his Republican presidential campaign, with top donors warning that the former Florida governor needs to demonstrate growth in the polls over the next month or face serious defections among supporters.

The warnings, expressed by numerous senior GOP fund­raisers in recent days, come as Bush and an allied super PAC are in the early stages of an aggressive television ad campaign they say will help erase doubts about his viability.

But Bush continues to battle against a steady decline in the polls, sinking to fifth place at just 7 percent in a national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released Sunday and similarly languishing in the early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire.

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Lawmakers: U.S. plan for Internet may be unconstitutional

The lawmakers point out that the Constitution says "Congress has the exclusive power..."

President Obama’s plan to “internationalize” the Internet may be unconstitutional, key members of Congress are claiming.

The group of lawmakers sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office last week, saying the plan to relinquish oversight of Internet domain name functions to a global, multi-stakeholder body raised questions about the administration’s “authority to transfer possession and control of critical components of the Internet’s infrastructure to a third party.”

The letter was signed by the chairmen of both congressional judiciary committees, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va; presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif. Issa is also a former chairman of the House Oversight Committee.

The lawmakers point out that the Constitution says “Congress has the exclusive power ‘to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States.'”

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As US Greenlights a Nuclear Iran, the DOE Closes the Last American-Owned Uranium Plant

In a move that even Democrats are calling “shortsighted,” the Obama Administration and the Department of Energy have decided to shutter the American Centrifuge Project in Piketon, Ohio. That is the last American-owned Uranium plant in the United States. The national security and energy implications are grave and life-threatening to this country. We used to produce about 50% of the world’s uranium. Now, we produce less than 10%. With this closure, we will have to rely on reserves that decay within 12.5 years. We will have to go to foreigners, specifically our enemies, to get uranium for nuclear weapons and for energy needs here in the US. In other words, Obama has fast-tracked Iran going nuclear and has fast-tracked the US for being denuclearized in every way. This is beyond alarming. Obama is not just gutting us militarily… he’s stripping us of the ability to even produce what we need to defend ourselves. It’s called treason.

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Axel Springer Buys Business Insider For $443 Million, Paying 9x Projected Revenues

In the latest sign easy-money market froth may be peaking, moments ago German media conglomerate Axel Springer announced it has agreed to buy 88% of web-only Business Insider, adding to the 9% it already owns, for $343 million, which according to the Springer press release values 100% of the content aggregator at $442 million "on the basis of a cash and debt free valuation of USD 390 million." The remaining 3% of the company will be retained by Bezos Expeditions, the personal investment company of Jeff Bezos, who purchased a $5 million stake in 2013.

The transaction means that Business Insider, which was founded in 2007 in by Henry Blodget (who had previously spent several years as a freelance writer and consultant), Kevin Ryan and Dwight Merriman, is valued about 77% higher than Washington Post which was acquired by Jeff Bezos in 2013 for $250 million, and 40% higher than the previous record paid for an all-digital media outlet, when AOL acquired Huffington Post for $315 million in 2011. According to Springer, founder Henry Blodget and COO Julie Hansen will stay on board and "remain significantly invested through an extensive, long-term equity incentive."

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US Constitution vs. Islamic Sharia Law

Anti-cop vandalism at Maryland Shopping Center

BROOKLYN, Md. (WJLA) — Officers responded to a report of anti-cop vandalism at the Ritchie Highway Shopping Center Monday morning, around 7:40 a.m.

Upon arriving at the scene, officers discovered "Killing AAC Cops Coming Soon" spray painted on three separate outdoor walls of the shopping center.

Officers canvased the area and located additional vandalism at 200 Hammonds Lane on a directional sign which read, "Kill Cops."

Police Chief Timothy Altomare and county executive Steve Schuh released a statement on behalf of their findings, saying:

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Senate approves temporary spending bill; House to follow

A temporary funding measure that would keep the government open past a midnight deadline has sailed through the Senate and should shortly make its way through a badly divided House and on to President Barack Obama by Wednesday night.

The 78-20 tally represented a vote of confidence for a pragmatic approach engineered by top GOP leaders determined to avoid a government shutdown.

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Wild Mushrooms With Sprinkles On Top

Confederate Battle Flag at School Leads to Lockdown

POLK COUNTY, Ga. - A trio of students has been suspended from school after one of them brought a Confederate battle flag to campus.

Officials said the disruption occurred Wednesday morning at Rockmart High School in Polk County when a 10th grade boy arrived with a Confederate battle flag attached to his backpack.

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Scientists say Maryland’s gigantic new oyster reef is a pearl that could save the Chesapeake Bay

The world’s tallest building stands in Dubai. The largest city is in Japan. Brazil’s Amazon is the largest rain forest. And the largest airport sits in the middle of a Saudi Arabian desert.

But Maryland can lay claim to the world’s largest man-made oyster reef. It was finished just days ago, and rests at the watery bottom of Harris Creek on the Eastern Shore, spread across more acres than the national Mall.

Why is this a big deal? The reef in the creek is the foundation of Maryland’s bid to resuscitate its troubled oyster population, overfished to near oblivion for decades and attacked by a couple of killer diseases as vicious as the bubonic plague. Oysters are more than a food that pair well with a dash of lemon and sauce; they are cleaning machines that filter dirty water in the polluted Chesapeake Bay.

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Expansion of Piedmont Airlines Offices Announced

Bob Culver, County Executive of Wicomico County, along with Steve Farrow, CEO of Piedmont Airlines, announce the expansion of Piedmont’s offices into the David J. Ward terminal building. The offices, which were renovated by Piedmont, will house administrative staff plus the Ground Support Equipment staff.

Piedmont Airlines, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines, will receive its first Embraer 145 regional jet in October, and will start using regional jets on select routes out of Philadelphia in early 2016.

“I am very excited about Piedmont’s expansion,” County Executive Culver said. “Piedmont is a great partner in providing passenger service to the Salisbury Ocean City Wicomico Regional Airport. We are looking forward to the new jets and the new jobs these regional jets will bring.”

“Piedmont employs more than 400 people in Wicomico County, and that number is increasing,” said Steve Farrow, Piedmont Airlines CEO. “The expansion into the old terminal building gives us the space we need immediately, and the opportunity to continue to grow as we increase our fleet over the next several years.

Piedmont Airlines, headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland, is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group. Piedmont employees 6500 aviation professionals in more than 80 locations in the United States. Piedmont operates a fleet of 37 deHavilland Dash 8 turboprops and will expand its fleet to include 20 Embraer 145 regional jets in 2016.

Pending Sales of Previously Owned Homes Fall

Contract signings to purchase previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly declined in August for just the second time this year, signaling residential real estate might have difficulty building on recent momentum.

An index of pending home sales decreased 1.4 percent after a 0.5 percent advance in July, the National Association of Realtors said Monday. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for the gauge to climb 0.4 percent.

A scant supply of homes for sale that’s keeping prices elevated is hampering demand. At the same time, historically low mortgage rates and steady employment gains should help underpin the market as the broader U.S. economy battles headwinds from dollar appreciation and slower overseas growth.

“Pending sales have leveled off since mid-summer, with buyers being bounded by rising prices and few available and affordable properties within their budget,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement.

Estimates in the Bloomberg survey of 37 economists ranged from a decrease of 4.2 percent to an advance of 1.5 percent.

Purchase contracts increased 6.7 percent in the 12 months ended in August after a 7.2 percent annual gain in July on an unadjusted basis, the NAR report showed.

The pending sales index was 109.4 on a seasonally adjusted basis. A reading of 100 corresponds to the average level of contract activity in 2001, or “historically healthy” home-buying traffic, according to the NAR.

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The ‘Affordable Housing’ Fraud

Nowhere has there been so much hand-wringing over a lack of “affordable housing,” as among politicians and others in coastal California. And nobody has done more to make housing unaffordable than those same politicians and their supporters.

A recent survey showed that the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco was just over $3,500. Some people are paying $1,800 a month just to rent a bunk bed in a San Francisco apartment.

It is not just in San Francisco that putting a roof over your head can take a big chunk out of your pay check. The whole Bay Area is like that. Thirty miles away, Palo Alto home prices are similarly unbelievable.

One house in Palo Alto, built more than 70 years ago, and just over one thousand square feet in size, was offered for sale at $1.5 million. And most asking prices are bid up further in such places.

Another city in the Bay Area with astronomical housing prices, San Mateo, recently held a public meeting and appointed a task force to look into the issue of “affordable housing.”

Public meetings, task forces and political hand-wringing about a need for “affordable housing” occur all up and down the San Francisco peninsula, because this is supposed to be such a “complex” issue.

Someone once told President Ronald Reagan that a solution to some controversial issue was “complex.” President Reagan replied that the issue was in fact simple, “but it is not easy.”

Is the solution to unaffordable housing prices in parts of California simple? Yes. It is as simple as supply and demand. What gets complicated is evading the obvious, because it is politically painful.

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Hillary Clinton's campaign on suicide watch

Anot-so-funny thing is happening to Hillary Clinton on her way to the coronation. By this time she was supposed to be busy getting accustomed to the purple, looking forward to high times next summer at the Democratic National Convention in Tampa. She might have been thinking about what she would do about those carpets upstairs in the White House that she never got around to replacing when she lived there in that other century. Now she’s on a suicide watch.

Will she continue to die the death of a thousand self-inflicted cuts, or will she — and the rest of us — be put out of her misery by an embarrassed and frightened party and an ambitious vice president who can’t believe the prospect of a second chance at a job he has lusted for, for so long.

The pollsters, eager to get an early line on prospects for the November election next year, find that as of now Hillary would lose narrowly to Carly Fiorina, the onetime CEO at Hewlett-Packard, and shellacked by Ben Carson, the distinguished neurosurgeon. Nothing recedes like success, and prospects can change at warp speed, and public-opinion polls a year ahead of an election are no basis for a wager, but even a reasonably precocious fifth-grader can see that the lady is in deep, deep smelly stuff.

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Donald Trump: America Needs ‘Fair Trade,’ Not ‘Free Trade’

During an interview with 60 Minutes, GOP frontrunner Donald Trump was questioned about the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), calling it a “disaster” and saying America needs “fair trade,” not “free trade.”

Trump told interviewer Scott Pelley that NAFTA is “a disaster” and the agreement shouldn’t exist.

Reports and studies have been in conflict for roughly a decade as to whether or not NAFTA caused millions of American jobs to be lost.

President Bill Clinton enacted NAFTA in 1994, but President Obama has criticized the deal, saying that roughly one million jobs have been lost because of it. FactCheck.Org disagreed with the premise that NAFTA has cost jobs, reporting: “Actually, nearly 25 million jobs have been gained. Nearly all economic studies say NAFTA’s net effect on jobs was negligible.”

Despite being critical of NAFTA, Obama has been negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) — a trade deal he planned to introduce to Congress in the Fall.

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GOVERNOR HOGAN: RECONSIDER YOUR POSITION AND RELEASE ALLOCATED FUNDS

The ACLU of Maryland, Advocates for Children and Youth, Baltimore Teachers Union, League of Women Voters, Maryland Education Coalition, Maryland Out of School Time Network, Maryland PTA, and Maryland State Education Association sent a letter to Governor Hogan about the importance of education funding. Read our letter.

We are working together to ensure the highest quality of education for all of our state's children. The impact of the GCEI cuts are being felt in districts across the state. We are appealing one more time to the governor to reconsider his position and release the allocated funds.

Learn more about the ACLU of Maryland's Education Reform Project.

Found dog at 900 Mt. Hermon Rd. The dog has been taken to Humane Society

PhD Says Monsanto Has Been Lying About Safety of Cry Proteins in GM Bt Crops

And how GMOs could be triggering allergies

In a recent interview on Food Sleuth Radio, Dr. Hansen exposes Monsanto’s latest contrivance – that Bt toxic corn is ‘safe’ to eat. Dr. Hansen provides ‘clean’ science through Consumer Reports that has no private backing, and certainly none by the GM industry.

Hansen states that biotechnology allows you to move genetic traits from any possible source – viruses, bacteria, animals, humans, etc. and put them into plants. This is what allowed scientists to make Bt corn and other Bt crops, and then patent them.

Bt crops are created by inserting a gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringienesis into a plant, thereby creating a pesticide that lives within the plant from roots to stems. The plant itself, in fact, becomes a pesticide, and when insect pests eat them, their guts are altered, and the insect dies.

The first Bt corn variety made by Monsanto, MON 810 (which was submitted to the FDA with research only done by Monsanto itself), is promoted by the company as being safe; however, the FDA has never declared that BT crops were safe, and in fact, no solid safety testing has been done on Bt toxins.

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Last Gun Store in San Francisco Closing

In October, High Bridge Arms—the last gun store in San Francisco—will be closing its doors for good due to gun controls with which the store refuses to comply.

San Francisco has emerged as the gun control capital of California, with laws regulating everything from magazine capacity to allowable types of ammunition to limits on advertising to the manner in which guns must be stored–and beyond. For decades, High Bridge Arms has adapted to the passage of each new gun control, but it views the latest push as a step too far.

According to SFist, the newest control push “comes from Supervisor Mark Farrell (District 2), and proposes to require that all gun sales in San Francisco be videotaped.” It would also “further require that all gun and ammunition buyers’ names, birthdates, addresses and driver’s license numbers be supplied to the San Francisco Police Department. Sup. Farrell proposed the idea in July, and it may be voted on this month.”

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'Migrants' Discuss Raping, Robbing Other Travelers

A Ukrainian journalist who traveled by train with some of the hundreds of thousands of Mideast migrants seeking asylum in the West is warning that many are not the peace-loving job-hunters the new host nations desire.

A fluent speaker of Arabic, Aida Bolivar said she overheard them openly speak of robbing and raping fellow travelers.

A Hungarian television channel broadcast the interview with Bolivar, who was traveling Aug. 31 from Budapest to Vienna on one of the trains virtually taken over by migrants flooding Europe, ostensibly because of war in Syria, Iraq and Libya.

Bolivar estimated 90 percent of the migrants were healthy men from age 18 to 45. They would, she said, grab children at random and use them to bludgeon their way onto train cars.

“We sat down, the rest of the car was totally empty. Within minutes, something unbelievable happened. Huge screaming, the windows were cracking, the situation was unbelievable. Like some dark cloud, a mass of people got on,” she said.

“There were conflicts, fights and other awful things,” Bolivar said.

The climax came “when they began talking to each other in a relaxed tone, considering whether or not they should rob us, since that would please Allah, because we were infidels.”

“As for me, it would really be worth raping me, because I am not dressed like a proper woman. I haven’t got a hijab on my head, that is, I’m not Muslim, and so I am bad,” she said.

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BREAKING NEWS: Russia launches airstrikes in Syria

Russian warplanes launch airstrikes against Syrian opposition fighters near the northern city of Homs, a senior military official tells Fox News.

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Caption This Photo 9-30-15

Non-Profit Failed Freddie Gray’s Neighborhood, Still Gets HUD Millions

A liberally funded anti-poverty group’s plan failed miserably to revitalize the destitute Baltimore neighborhood where Freddie Gray lived but the non-profit continues to pay its officers lavish salaries with one top executive earning more than $1 million in 2014.

Columbia, Md.-based Enterprise Community Partners conducts anti-poverty projects nationwide, but it lost the battle in its own backyard in Sandtown-Winchester – the Baltimore neighborhood that was once home to former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and entertainer Billie Holiday. Gray died there after suffering a spinal cord injury while in police custody in an incident that sparked violent riots across Baltimore earlier this year.

Enterprise’s extravagant salaries reminded conservative think tank Capital Research Center Executive Vice President Scott Walker of Thomas Sowell’s “Poverty Pimps” – a 1998 poem about profiting from the poor. 

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Russia tells US to stop Syria airstrikes as Putin gets go-ahead to send troops

Russian officials have demanded that American warplanes exit Syrian airspace immediately, a senior U.S. official told Fox News early Wednesday.

The official told Fox News that Russian diplomats sent an official demarche ordering U.S. planes out of Syria, adding that Russian fighter jets were now flying over Syrian territory. U.S. military sources told Fox News that U.S. planes would not comply with the Russian demand.

"There is nothing to indicate that we are changing operations over Syria," a senior defense official said.

"We have had every indication in recent weeks that (the Russians) were going to do something given the build-up," another defense official added.

The move by Moscow marks a major escalation in ongoing tensions between the two countries over military action in the war-torn country and comes moments after Russian lawmakers formally approved a request from the country's president, Vladimir Putin, to authorize the use of troops in Syria.

The Russian demand also mirrors one made by Turkey this past July, when Ankara asked U.S. planes to fly only in airspace south of Mosul, Iraq. In that case, 24 Turkish jets bombed Kurdish positions, catching the U.S. off guard.

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3v3 Basketball Tournament Open to Middle, High School and Men’s Teams

(Salisbury, MD) The all new 3v3 Basketball Tournament featuring the Old School Ballers will tip-off at Bennett Middle School in Fruitland, Md. on Saturday, Oct. 24.  Games are free to the public, and play will take place from 9 a.m. through 6:30 p.m.  The tournament is currently recruiting middle, high school and men’s teams for the competition. 

Middle & High School Tournament

Pool: Limit of 8 teams per pool (8 in middle, 8 in high school)

Teams: Max of 4 players per team

Cost: $30 per team

Check-In: 8:30 a.m.

Tip Off: 9 a.m.

1st place take home championship trophy (1 per pool).

2nd place take home runner up trophy (1 per pool).

Men's Tournament

Pool: Limit of 16 teams

Teams: Max of 4 players per team

Cost: $45

Check-In: 1 p.m.

Tip Off: 2 p.m.

1st place take home trophies and $150.

2nd place take home runner up trophy.

Old School Ballers

Watch Wicomico County basketball legends go head-to-head in this unique tournament!

Game 1: Noon

Game 2: 1 p.m.

Championship: 5 p.m.

For additional information on the tournament please visit www.WicomicoRecandParks.org.

Paul Krugman: Why the Republicans in DC Are About to Get Much More Dangerous

Now that John Boehner's gone, the extremists in his party are going to be even worse.

John Boehner was awful, or as Paul Krugman writes in Monday's column, "a terrible, very bad, no good speaker of the House. Under his leadership, Republicans pursued an unprecedented strategy of scorched-earth obstructionism, which did immense damage to the economy and undermined America’s credibility around the world."

The trouble is, Boehner was merely a symptom of a far worse strain in the Republican party that, with his exit, will be unleashed on us with even fuller fury.

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Local Authorities Warn Public Not To Eat Cheese From Overturned Truck On The Highway

Listen. I know how tempting free cheese is — grocery stores put away their samples when I come sniffing around — but no matter how badly you want to save cheese from the horrible fate of going uneaten, don’t do it. Officials in Alabama had to warn local residents not to scoop up cheese strewn across the road after a truck overturned on the highway. 

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Amtrak Will Now Start Enforcing Baggage Limits On Trains

If you’ve been hopping on trains with big loads of luggage and gleefully stowing it Amtrak’s baggage compartments, you’re going to need to curb your tendency to over pack: starting Oct. 1, Amtrak will start enforcing its baggage weight limits, handing out fees to those hauling more than their fair share onboard. 

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Could You Handle It?

Just Plain Wrong

Unconditional Love

Donald Trump: Low-income people will file a one-page form with the IRS that says, 'I win'

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has released his plan to overhaul the nation's tax code. He made the announcement Monday during a news conference at Trump Tower in New York City.

One of the most notable elements of the plan: Those who make less than $25,000 (or $50,000 for joint filers) will pay no income taxes.

What will they do instead? File a one-page form with the IRS that says, "I win."

From the tax plan:

If you are single and earn less than $25,000, or married and jointly earn less than $50,000, you will not owe any income tax. That removes nearly 75 million households — over 50% — from the income tax rolls. They get a new one page form to send the IRS saying, "I win," those who would otherwise owe income taxes will save an average of nearly $1,000 each.

Trump's plan would also condense the number of income-tax brackets to four from seven, with brackets of 0%, 10%, 20%, and 25%. It also takes aim at the "carried interest" loophole.

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