Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

New Drug For People That Are Easily Offended


‘BIKERS FOR TRUMP’ Just Put Liberals On NOTICE – ‘Behave During Inauguration, Or Else’

I hope the roar of the Bikers for Trump arriving in DC causes cold fear to go down the spines of these protesters. If they have any sense, it will… but alas, sense is not something most of them have. 200,000 Bikers for Trump will be arriving in our nation’s capitol and they are putting liberals on notice… behave during the Inauguration or answer to us. They will work with the police and the National Guard, but make no mistake they will defend and protect Trump supporters.

As I understand it, Bikers for Trump applied for a permit in DC and were initially denied. Chris Cox told them that if they could not get a permit, they would just spread out among the protesters. Next thing you knew, they were the only pro-Trump group to get a permit. The rest were snatched up by anti-Trump groups. Frankly, I think this is going to get very confrontational. But so be it. The bikers aren’t backing down and this time if radicals want to dance, they’ll have dance partners.

From the Conservative Tribune:

If you’re a leftist and you want to cause trouble on Inauguration Day, Bikers for Trump would like you to know that you’re going to have to go through a “wall of meat” to do it.

In an appearance on “Fox & Friends” on Saturday, Chris Cox — the leader of the Bikers for Trump group — announced that his 5,000-strong contingent of bikers at the inauguration will protect Trump supporters from liberal protesters who get too rowdy

“In the event that we are needed, we will form a wall of meat,” Cox said. “We’ll be shoulder to shoulder with our brothers, and we’ll be toe-to-toe with anyone who’s going to break through police barriers.”

According to Fox News, Cox’s group has grown from just 100 riders when it started back in Virginia Beach in October, 2015, to over 200,000 members now. They plan on being one of the biggest pro-Trump contingents at the inauguration — which is good, considering they say on their Facebook page that most of the permits have gone to the anti-Trump crowd.

“We have the only pro-Trump permits for the inauguration,” a post from November reads. “Anti-Trump groups have gobbled up all other areas and are actively preparing and advertising for people to join their effort to cause chaos and mayhem. Remember the Bikers For Trump standing toe to toe against (Black Lives Matter) and shoulder to shoulder with law-enforcement at the RNC in Cleveland, Ohio.”

More

MSP Update - Road Rage Shooting 1-18-17


Delmarva's Chicken Industry in 2016: Sensible Growth, Economic Strength

Chicken Industry, A Mainstay of Delmarva’s Economy,  Shows Sensible Growth

Attached fact sheet provides 2016 data on Delmarva’s chicken production

GEORGETOWN, Del. – Delmarva’s chicken industry was a force for stability in 2016, keeping its bird capacity level and even slightly reducing the number of chicken houses in operation, while maintaining the total chicken produced and supporting the region’s crop family farms with nearly $1 billion spent on feed ingredients.

Statistics on the chicken economy compiled by Delmarva Poultry Industry, Inc. (DPI), the nonprofit trade association, should put to rest worries about the industry ‘overbuilding’ new chicken houses. The data, supplied by the five poultry companies that operate on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and in Delaware, show total chicken house capacity declined 0.5 percent in 2016, from 123 million birds to 122.5 million. The number of chicken houses in operation also fell, from 4,840 at the beginning of 2016 to 4,700 houses in use at the end of the year. The reason is simple: many chicken growers are building modern, efficient chicken houses, replacing more numerous and smaller structures as they do so. The overall effect, though, is in no way a runaway pace of growth in chicken house capacity, as some chicken critics agitating for a moratorium on new chicken house construction assert. In fact, the opposite is true, with a net reduction in 140 chicken houses seen last year.

Family farms and chicken companies use a wide variety of production methods to provide consumers with choices in the type of chicken they buy for their households. Regular and comprehensive animal care training for farmers and their employees and ongoing monitoring of bird health and welfare are part of the high standards for Delmarva chicken farmers and companies. That commitment to raising chickens efficiently and responsibly led to a 4 percent increase in the total pounds of chicken produced on Delmarva in 2016, with a total of 4.1 billion pounds of “Delmarvalous” chicken delivered to market.

What You’re Paying At the Gas Pump Is About To DRASTICALLY Change Under Trump!

Anyone else tired of paying ridiculously high prices for gas? It’s become an annoyingly large part of the American citizen’s budget, and has put a rather large burden on our shoulders.

Fortunately for us, we’re about to see Trump reverse this trend and hopefully make life easier for each and every one of us. Yes, including those who hate him for reasons unrelated to his policies.

When America is running at full-steam, we produce more oil and gas than any other country on earth. Hillary Clinton was determined to put an end to that, but not President-Elect Trump. He plans to increase production, loosen environmental regulations, and get “clean coal” technology working everywhere (in fact, the first “clean coal” power plant went operational near Houston recently.

Trump is going to restart construction of the Keystone XL pipeline by voiding a series of executive orders that brought the massive project to a halt.

More

The 3 Stooges


For driverless cars, a moral dilemma: Who lives or dies?

Imagine you're behind the wheel when your brakes fail. As you speed toward a crowded crosswalk, you're confronted with an impossible choice: veer right and mow down a large group of elderly people, or veer left into a woman pushing a stroller.

Now imagine you're riding in the back of a self-driving car. How would it decide?

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are asking people worldwide how they think a robot car should handle such life-or-death decisions. Their goal is not just for better algorithms and ethical tenets to guide autonomous vehicles, but to understand what it will take for society to accept the vehicles and use them.

Their findings present a dilemma for car makers and governments eager to introduce self-driving vehicles on the promise that they'll be safer than human-controlled cars. People prefer a self-driving car to act in the greater good, sacrificing its passenger if it can save a crowd of pedestrians. They just don't want to get into that car.

More

OK, That's Funny


Pence To Use Reagan’s Bible For Inauguration Ceremony

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Mike Pence will use Ronald Reagan’s family Bible when he’s sworn in as Donald Trump’s vice president Friday, the first person to use the Bible during an inauguration ceremony since the former president himself.

The former Indiana governor said in a statement that it is “humbling” to use the 40th president’s Bible when Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas administers the oath of office.

“President Ronald Reagan placed his faith in a loving God and the goodness of our country. He set out to change a nation and in doing so, he changed the world. In the march of history, Ronald Reagan’s time in office was limited, but his legacy inspired a generation and will continue beyond,” Pence said.

More

State Department Held Stress Workshops After Trump’s Win

The State Department held stress management sessions following Donald Trump’s presidential election victory, providing employees tips for how to cope with change so they do not “become paralyzed by fear.”

The workshops, titled “The Emotional Transition: Managing the Stress of Change,” were held by the State Department’s Bureau of Medical Services on Dec. 8 and 14, just one month after the department’s former boss, Hillary Clinton, was defeated.

“Change is an inevitable part of the human experience,” an email invitation obtained by theWashington Free Beacon reads. “We can become paralyzed by fear or allow the experience of change to propel us closer to self-actualization.”

The purpose of the post-election seminars, which were open to all Foggy Bottom employees, contractors, interns, and workers for the U.S. Agency for International Development, was to dive into the “emotional cycles” of change.

“Our perspective determines our outcome,” the State Department continued. “This seminar is designed to discuss the impact of change; the emotional cycles some people experience when confronted with change, and tools to effectively manage the stress of change.”

More

Amazon to Add Third Fulfillment Center to Maryland

BALTIMORE (WJZ)– Amazon announced Wednesday that it plans to open a 1.2 million-square-foot fulfillment center in North East, Maryland.

Amazon employees at the North East fulfillment center will pick, pack and ship larger customer items such as big-screen televisions, kayaks and patio furniture.

“Creating jobs and growing Maryland’s economy is a top priority of our administration,” said Governor Larry Hogan. “Amazon’s continued investment in Maryland, which includes thousands of jobs for our citizens, is a great example of companies that choose to locate and expand their business right here in Maryland – a testament to our state’s growing economy.”

More

Race Has Many Different Meanings


Affordable Care Act repeal could cost Maryland well over $2 billion, report says

Efforts to repeal or replace the Affordable Care Act could result in a financial impact for Maryland of over $2.2 billion in fiscal year 2018, and well over another $2 billion by fiscal year 2020, according to a new state report.

The state government's Department of Legislative Services published a report Tuesday on the impact of the ACA in Maryland, and how plans to revise or repeal it may impact the state's economy and health care systems.

The ACA, or "Obamacare," has been a topic of contention within state and federal governments over the past several months. Many Republicans have made attempts at ousting the law for years and Vice President-elect Mike Pence recently said that repealing and replacing the ACA would be the incoming administration's "first order of business." Meanwhile, many Democrats fear that such a move could leave more than 20 million Americans without health insurance.

More

Pro-Lifers DENIED Access To Women’s March

It looks like brain-sick liberals are preparing a “Women’s March” after the inauguration in protest to Donald Trump. The women who accused Bill Clinton of sexual assault made it crystal clear what they thought about such an attempt.

Apparently, the “tolerant” protesters aren’t permitting anyone who dissents from ‘their’ idea of equality to attend the march. Makes sense, right?

…How inclusive of them…

More

OCPD Warning Citizens of Computer Repair Scams


OCEAN CITY, MD – : The Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) has recently seen an increase in reports of computer scams.

In each case, the victim reported being contacted in some way by an online computer repair company stating that their computer had a virus that needed to be removed. The victim would then pay the repair company hundreds of dollars through either a wire transfer, gift cards, or a fictitious online payment system. One victim lost nearly $1,000 before contacting police. In most cases, the scammer would gain remote access to the computer and rather than fix it, the scammer would create a virus.

Internet crime schemes such as these steal millions of dollars each year from unsuspecting victims across the country. The OCPD offers a few simple steps to spot similar scams:
  • Be cautious of unsolicited offers. If you didn’t ask for computer repair services, a legitimate company would not have known that it was needed.
  • Be wary if the seller only accepts wire transfers, gift cards or cash.
  • When asked to pay with a credit card through a website, ensure the site is secure and reputable before providing your credit card number.
  • Research the company before agreeing to the service. Most legitimate companies will have information about their company online, as well as customer reviews.
Any citizen that believes he/she may have been a victim of a similar crime should contact their local police department to file a report.

No Tax Hikes, Serious Cuts In Hogan's Proposed Budget

Gov. Larry Hogan unveiled his fiscal year 2018 budget proposal Tuesday, saying it spends less than last year's budget and doesn't raise taxes.

Hogan said there are no serious cuts in the budget, and that the state rainy day fund is being used to balance the budget.

The governor said he is introducing a bill requiring mandate relief. He also wants the General Assembly to put aside a "tax-and-spend mentality," and he is introducing the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

Hogan said education spending increases in this budget proposal with $334 million proposed for school construction and $1.5 billion for higher education.

More

James O’Keefe OUTS Leftists And Their Potential “TERRORIST” Plans For Inauguration Day!

James O’Keefe is known for his work with Project Veritas. He and his team have worked to uncover information regarding the left side political spectrum. He led a large force against the corruption of the Hillary Clinton campaign. And he has not stopped searching for more information. Most recently his team has found groups of individuals set on preventing the inauguration of Donald Trump. Many are outraged by these men’s plans. But is it terrorism that they are plotting?

You can check out the video here:

More/Video

Montgomery Co. votes to raise minimum wage

WASHINGTON – The Montgomery County Council approved a bill Tuesday that would raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by the year 2020 but the measure faces an uncertain future.

The legislation passed on a narrow vote of 5-4. Several members said they believed the council was moving ahead too quickly.

“I’m concerned that we are literally on the verge of voting for a wide sweeping economic policy without the benefit of any economic data that involves the unique situation of Montgomery County,” said Councilmember Sidney Katz. “We need to accomplish raising the minimum wage by considering all aspects of our actions.”

The four members who voted against the bill were hoping to delay action on the minimum wage so the council could first study the effects of recent minimum wage hikes in the county as well as possible effects of further increases.

More

Ocean City Man Charged in Fatal Boating Accident

An Ocean City man has been charged with multiple boating violations in connection with an accident that lead to the death of a 9-year-old boy.

Tyler Barnes, 33, operates Ocean City Watersports LLC, which rented a pontoon boat to a New Jersey family in August. A boy, one of 17 people aboard the vessel, slipped off the bow of the boat and was struck multiple times by the propeller, killing him.

Barnes was charged with negligent operation of a vessel, two counts of failing to have required safety equipment on board, renting a boat lacking proper equipment and failing to keep records. A Wicomico County District Court commissioner found probable cause yesterday and issued a criminal summons.

Kaden Frederick was one of four people sitting with their legs dangling from the front of the boat as it traveled in Sinepuxent Bay. Bow riding is illegal in Maryland.

When Frederick fell between the pontoons, the operator couldn’t stop the vessel and the propeller struck the boy. Emergency crews couldn’t resuscitate the child.

Barnes has a preliminary hearing set for Feb. 17 in Worcester County District Court. If he chooses, he may plead guilty before that date to any or all of the charges. The cumulative pre-payable fine would be $640.

How The Systemic Segregation Of Schools Is Maintained By 'Individual Choices'

Sixty-three years after the Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, many schools across the country either remain segregated or have re-segregated.

Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross that when it comes to school segregation, separate is never truly equal.

"There's never been a moment in the history of this country where black people who have been isolated from white people have gotten the same resources," Hannah-Jones says. "They often don't have the same level of instruction. They often don't have strong principals. They often don't have the same technology."

Still, when it was time for Hannah-Jones' daughter, Najya, to attend kindergarten, the journalist chose the public school near their home in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, even though its students were almost all poor and black or Latino. Hannah-Jones laterwrote about that decision in The New York Times Magazine.

More

‘Wire’ actress directing HBO documentary on Baltimore

BALTIMORE (AP) — Baltimore in the wake of the death of Freddie Gray will be the subject of an upcoming HBO documentary titled, “For the Love of Baltimore.”

The Baltimore Sun reports (http://bsun.md/2jQvdE8) that the cable channel announced the documentary over the weekend on the Television Critics Association press tour in Los Angeles.

HBO says in a statement that the production “explores a city divided” and is “told through the journeys of local activists, police officers, community residents and gang affiliates.”

More

'Robot Lawyer' Makes The Case Against Parking Tickets

It was the first day of school for Dan Lear's three kids. In a scramble to get his boys to class on time, the Seattle lawyer wound up parking in a space he probably should have avoided.

"There was a fire hydrant, but the curb wasn't painted and the fire hydrant was painted a kind of a funny color. And so I thought, and maybe it was wishful thinking, but I thought I would be OK to park there," he says.

Sure enough, Lear returned to a ticket.

"I was bummed! I mean, obviously no one's really happy when they get a ticket but I went home, I put it on my fridge and I let it sit there cause I just didn't want to deal with it," he says.

So he found something that would — DoNotPay, a free online "robot lawyer."

It has helped drivers in London and New York City appeal parking tickets.

More

Thousands of Criminal Illegal Immigrants Sent Home After Apprehension at Southwest Border

Nearly 4,000 illegal immigrants apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol at the southwest border over a three-year period were allowed to return to their home countries despite having past criminal convictions and connections to criminal networks.

The statistic is included in a new government audit exposing shortcomings in the way Border Patrol agents deal with illegal immigrants caught trying to cross the border into the United States.

Border Patrol agents use the Consequence Delivery System, or CDS, to classify apprehended aliens using seven criminal and noncriminal categories. They then decide which of eight consequences the apprehended aliens should receive, based on how effective the consequences are in preventing the individuals from trying again to illegally enter the United States. The CDS system plays a major role in the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to combat transnational criminal organizations and drug smuggling across the U.S. border.

However, Border Patrol agents incorrectly classified roughly 15,000 criminal alien apprehensions between fiscal years 2013-15, according to a Government Accountability Office report issued this month. Twenty-four percent of these aliens, or 3,717, were allowed to voluntarily return to their countries of origin. Voluntary return is rated as the least effective and efficient of the consequences. More severe consequences include criminal prosecution.

More

NY Post: Pet Owners Resort to Intentionally Harming Their Animals to Get Drugs

People are injuring their pets on purpose in order to obtain painkiller drugs,the New York Post reports.

The paper writes about the painkiller Tramadol, which is prescribed to both humans and animals. At the wholesale level, they cost less than $25 for 1,000 pills, the Post reports.

The low price, coupled with the nation's opioid epidemic, has some people taking drastic measures to get their hands on the painkiller. That includes, according to the Post, a Kentucky woman who sliced her dog's leg open with a razor on two occasions in order to obtain Tramadol.

In another case, authorities in Portland, Ore. found 100,000 pills and 17 dogs living in poor conditions.

More

Trump Effect? GM to Invest $1 Billion in US Factories

General Motors will reportedly invest at least $1 billion in several of its factories in the United States, a move that will create more than 1,000 jobs.
The Wall Street Journal reported GM could announce the news as early as Tuesday.
The news about the carmaker comes less than two weeks after President-elect Donald Trump called out GM on Twitter for making its Chevy Cruze in Mexico and then shipping the cars to the U.S. without paying border taxes.

General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A.or pay big border tax!

And last week during a press conference, Trump turned up the pressure on GM by praising Ford and Fiat Chrysler for investing in the U.S. and adding jobs. Then he said, "I hope that General Motors will be following. And I think they will be."

GM's general counsel Craig Glidden told The Journal the decision to invest more at its American plants did not happen overnight.

Ocean City Native Eyes Rare Cannes Film Festival Opportunity; Student Launches Crowdfunding Campaign After Short Film Recognized

BERLIN – Ocean City area native Emmi Shockley has partnered with aspiring and professional actors to debut a new short film, “We Regret to Inform You,” which will show at the Cannes Film Festival later this year.

Shockley, writer and director of the film, said the opportunity is part of a highly selective two-week training program in France, which she and crew member Nevin Kelly-Fair will attend. “We Regret to Inform You” will be one of 30 films produced by college students to show at the spring festival.

The short film follows a day in the life of a college student and the stream of consciousness that comes from the presence of his deceased friend. Shockley, 19, said the film explores moments of grief and gray areas between the living and dead.

More

THE FAR LEFT’S DANGEROUS REFUSAL TO FOLLOW THE LEADER …

In case you hadn’t noticed, the United States has become a very divided nation lately. There seems to be an endless reservoir of hate, blame and nastiness in this country – most of it revolving around the person of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump.

Notice we said “revolving around.” Because certainly not all of it is coming from Trump … nor is it all necessarily directed at him.

Make no mistake this website has plenty of misgivings about our nation’s next leader, and we’ve not hesitated to call him out on multiple occasions when we believed his views were off the mark. By and large, though, we’ve been supportive of the policies he has articulated – and we’ve enthusiastically embraced the sledgehammer he has brought to bear on America’s failed two-party state.

That sledgehammer is ultimately why we endorsed Trump – first because he vowed to overturn the corrupt GOP apple cart and second because he vowed to drain the corrupt Washington, D.C. swamp.

We believe both of these purifications are long overdue.

More

Woman dies of meningitis just days after SoulCycle fanatic was killed by disease

A woman has died of meningococcal meningitis just three days after a man's death was reportedly caused by the same bacterial disease 18 miles away in Northern California.

Laura Robson, 53, was found sitting upright, dead, on the back of a San Francisco Muni bus. Preliminary autopsy results suggest her death was due to meningococcal meningitis.

Her brother, David Robson, said that Laura recently had shoulder surgery at Marin General Hospital. The facility is just two miles from the SoulCycle studio where more than 200 people were told to seek medical attention last week after Sevin Philips died of the same disease shortly after exercising there.

More

America’s 2nd colonization: This time by Islamists

'Refugees' being moved into politically important states

As Barack Obama’s administration nears its end, the outgoing president is frantically admitting as many ‘refugees” as possible, with the overwhelming majority from Muslim countries such as Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.

At the current rate, about 110,580 will be admitted this fiscal year, surpassing Obama’s stated goal of 110,000. The refugees are also being concentrated in politically important states, suggesting there is an ideological agenda behind the population transfers.

Some might even say America is being “colonized.”

Again.

“That term applies to what’s happening to us,” said Leo Hohmann, author of the explosive book “Stealth Invasion: Muslim Conquest Through Immigration And Resettlement.” The veteran investigative reporter says the left is quite open about how it seeks to demographically deconstruct the United States, one city at a time.

Refugees are being planted in more than 300 cities and towns, often secretly, he said, with elected officials learning about the details of the refugee placements only after the fact.

More

Rep. Jerrold Nadler: Trump election ‘illegitimate,’ won’t attend inauguration

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, New York Democrat, said Monday he will not attend Friday’s inauguration and that he doesn’t see President-elect Donald Trump as a legitimate president even if he was legally elected.

Appearing on CNN’s “New Day,” Mr. Nadler cited Mr. Trump’s “inflammatory comments, his racist campaign, his conflicts of interest, refusal to disclose his taxes.”

He said the “last straw” was the president-elect’s “ad hominem personal attacks” on Rep. John Lewis, which came after Mr. Lewis said recently on NBC he didn’t see Mr. Trump as a “legitimate” president because of Russia’s purported involvement in the election.

More

Marc Lamont Hill: Trump’s Diversity Coalition ‘A Bunch of Mediocre Negroes’

On Monday’s “CNN Tonight,” Morehouse College Professor and CNN Commentator Marc Lamont Hill stated that President-Elect Donald Trump’s diversity coalition was “a bunch of mediocre negroes being dragged in front of TV as a photo-op for Donald Trump’s exploitative campaign against black people.”

Hill said, “I love Steve Harvey and I have respect for Steve Harvey and I think his intentions were accurate — or appropriate rather, but my disagreement is the way in which he’s being used by folk like Donald Trump. Again, his intention is just to have a seat at the table. But when you’re at the table, you should have experts at the table. You should have people who can challenge the president at the table. … Because all — because they keep bringing up comedians and actors and athletes to represent black interests is demeaning, it’s disrespectful, and it’s condescending. Bring some people up there with some expertise Donald Trump, don’t just bring up people to entertain.”

More

Maryland lawmakers say Rainy Day funds help budget holes

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland lawmakers say Gov. Larry Hogan is using some of the state’s Rainy Day Fund to fill budget holes.

Lawmakers from both parties met at the governor’s residence Tuesday morning to get a briefing on Hogan’s budget proposal.

Sen. Richard Madaleno, a Democrat, says about $177 million in Rainy Day Funds help balance the budget. The fund contains more than the targeted amount of 5 percent of the state budget.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller says there are less cuts than lawmakers expected, and education is fully funded. “That’s what rainy day funds are for,” he said.

More

Ads offer protesters up to $2,500 to agitate at Trump inaugural

Donald Trump may have a point about paid protesters: Job ads running in more than 20 cities offer $2,500 per month for agitators to demonstrate at this week’s presidential inauguration events.

Demand Protest, a San Francisco company that bills itself as the “largest private grassroots support organization in the United States,” posted identical ads Jan. 12 in multiple cities on Backpage.com seeking “operatives.”

“Get paid fighting against Trump!” says the ad.

“We pay people already politically motivated to fight for the things they believe. You were going to take action anyways, why not do so with us!” the ad continues. “We are currently seeking operatives to help send a strong message at upcoming inauguration protests.”

The job offers a monthly retainer of $2,500 plus “our standard per-event pay of $50/hr, as long as you participate in at least 6 events a year,” as well as health, vision and dental insurance for full-time operatives.

“There’s simply no credible evidence that the opposition to Trump is spurred by anything other than legitimate concern about what his presidency might entail,” said a Nov. 17 column in the Washington Post’s The Fix.

PolitiFact reported that a widely shared Nov. 11 article claiming an anti-Trump protester was paid $3,500 was fake news.

More here

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Put in another way with a football analogy, Hillary's team racked up over 500 yards to Trump's 200 yards, but six Hillary turnovers cost them the game in points. Simply put, but an effective counter to those who still believe that Hillary won the popular vote, therefore is the rightful president elect.

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE.

Here are the facts:

Trump won the popular vote in 31 states to her 19 and DC. 62% to her 38%.

Trump led in the total popular vote for all states except California.

Hillary won California 5,860,714 to Trump’s 3,151,821. 61.6% to 33.1% exclusive of the other candidates. Thus California gave Hillary the popular vote for all states as claimed by the Democrats and their media allies.

But deduct her California vote from her national vote leaving her with 54,978,783, and deduct Trump’s California vote from his national total, leaving him with 57,113.976, he wins in a landslide in the other 49 states, 51.3% to her 48.7%.

So, in effect, Hillary was elected president of California and Trump was elected president of the rest of the country by a substantial margin.

This exemplifies the wisdom of the Electoral College, to prevent the vote of any one populace state from overriding the vote of the others. Trump’s Campaign Manager, Kellyanne Conway, whose expertise is polling, saw this early on and devised her strategy of “6 pathways to the White House”.

This meant ignoring California with its huge Democrat majority and going after the states that would give him the necessary electoral votes to win, FL, NC, MI, PA, OH, and WI.

At its lowest point since the civil war! Could this mean the end of the Democrat Party? When the afternoon of January 20, 2017 arrives, the Republican Party will have:

1) The Presidency.
2) A majority of the House of Representatives.
3) A majority of the Senate.
4) Almost two-thirds of all the governorships.
5) Total control of the statehouses in almost two-thirds of all the states.

And in the near future, Republicans will be able to add:
6) A majority of the Supreme Court. The above has never happened before in American history.

Think about that and let it sink in for a moment. And it's all because of one reason: Barack Obama's forcing his extreme far-left agenda on an unwilling country by executive orders, left wing judges, and obsequious bureaucrats. It's important to pass this on. With the demand that we do away with the Electoral College and take the popular vote being pushed by the media, etc, all Americans need to know that the Electoral College is working exactly as our Founding Fathers intended.

Man tries to light self on fire outside DC Trump hotel

One person was injured outside Trump International Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue Tuesday night after a protester claimed he tried to set himself on fire.

He told News4's Shomari Stone it was an act of protest over the election of Donald Trump.

Police said they responded to a report of a person "in distress." D.C. Fire and Rescue confirmed one person was taken to a hospital with burn injuries.

More/Video

Ben Carson, [Gay] people dont get extra rights

The Eastern Shore's Arch Enemy steps down from Chairman of House Ways & Means

Hixson steps down from Maryland House leadership post, causing shuffle

A veteran state lawmaker has stepped down from a key Democratic leadership position, causing a shuffle in the House of Delegates.

Del. Sheila Hixson announced Tuesday that she's giving up her position as chairwoman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Del. Anne Kaiser, also a Montgomery County Democrat, will take over as chairwoman. Del. William Frick, another Montgomery County Democrat, will replace Kaiser as majority leader.

Hixson, a Montgomery County Democrat, will assume the title of "chairman emeritus." She had chaired the committee — which reviews legislation on education, elections, gambling, taxes and more — since 1993.

More

Matt Walsh: If your sex life is none of my business, stop demanding that I finance it

A lot of people have been offering their, um, feedback, to a couple of things I tweeted over the past week or so. And when I say “feedback” I mean that an angry mob numbering in the thousands descended upon my social media feeds and email inbox like rabid hyenas, eager to inform me that I’m awful, evil, ugly, fat, old, stupid, [expletive], [expletive], [expletive] [expletive] [expletive], etc., and because of this I should die, my wife should die, my children should die, everyone who has ever said a kind word to me should burn to death in a house fire, and my kids, who should already be dead, should also somehow become gay and transgender and pregnant so that karmic justice may be visited upon me, a bigot and a Nazi who is literally worse than a millions Hitlers combined.

Of the thousands of responses I received since Friday, easily 95 percent of them consisted of some combination of these. Because of my unspeakable tweets, I have been objectively described as an “anti-LGBTQ bigot” in the headlines of news articles. So far as I know, nobody who has written an article matter-of-factly calling me a bigot took the time to reach out to me first, but I suppose if I’d followed the clearly outlined instructions of the leftist Tolerance Brigade, I should have killed myself by now anyway. I guess they assumed I wouldn’t be able to comment because I’d be too busy playing Backgammon with my friend Adolf in Hell.

More

'CATASTROPHIC MISTAKE': Trump Slams Merkel's Migrant Policy

President-elect Donald Trump has slammed the mass migration policy of Germany’s Angela Merkel and welcomed Britain’s decision to leave the European Union (EU), predicting it will “end up being a great thing” and other countries will depart the crisis-stricken bloc.

“I sort of, as you know, predicted it,” he told British parliamentarian Michael Gove,reporting for London’s The Times in President-elect Trump’s first British press interview.

“The heat I took was unbelievable,” he said, “[but] people don’t want to have other people coming in and destroying their country.

“[I]n this country we’re gonna go very strong borders from the day I get in… We don’t want people coming in from Syria who we don’t know who they are. You know there’s no way of vetting these people. I don’t want to do what Germany did.”

Trump told Gove that, in his view, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision toencourage mass immigration into Europe was “the final straw that broke the camel’s back”.

More

Reporters Plead with MLK III to Attack Trump

On Monday afternoon, reporters stationed inside Trump Tower begged with Martin Luther King III to attack President-elect Trump over tweets concerning Democratic Congressman John Lewis (Ga.) following a meeting on the day honoring King’s father Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

King began by stating that he and Trump had “a very constructive meeting” with most of the focus being on voting rights, but the topic shifted to Lewis when reporters interjected with questions.

ABC correspondent Tom Llamas snuck in the first pathetic question baiting King into blasting Trump: “Mr. King, as you know, Representative Lewis still has the scars from the March on Selma. Were you offended by the President-elect's tweet that Representative Lewis is all talk and no action?”

King responded by stating the Lewis is, like “many others,” a “bridge builder” but added that “in the heat of emotion, a lot of things get said on both sides.”

With the press corps not satisfied, an unidentified male reporter trotted out this second-hand claim by a woman he saw on Sunday at Trump Tower:

More here

Gov. Hogan's Plans

Annapolis is wiping the sleep out of its eyes as 180 legislators come back. Friday will be 'YUGE' when our new President is sworn in, but Thursday may include a veto override of the Sun & Wind Tax {SB921} from last year.

SB921 will force utilities to increase their rates (making someone else raise the tax - sneaky) to chase renewables.
I have serious doubts we can ever achieve 25% of the power supply through solar, wind, etc. Maryland only generates 13,260.4 MW of energy, and in 2008 Marylanders used four times that: 63,000 MWh. Currently we make more than 50% of our energy with coal and 33% with nuclear but mostly buy from out of state. It would be smarter to focus on efficient use to cut demand.

How big a solar generator would it take to create 3.3 GW? The biggest one in the country is in the Mojave desert (gets a bit more sun than us) and only makes a tenth of what the bill requires. Rough estimate: a 3.3 GW solar generator may take 100 square miles: completely blocking the sun in Calvert County from Huntingtown to Solomon's Island. Another nuclear reactor would be a much better plan. I've asked some smart folks to give me a better estimate and some alternatives: if they exist I hope to articulate them.
Gov. Hogan's Legislation

The Governor plans to have legislation in every Committee: 

- Justice for Victims
- Student Debt
- Jobs
- Environment


Measures Aimed to Prevent Repeat Sex Offenders, Prosecute Human Traffickers, Support Victims of Crime, Keep Serial Drunk Drivers Off the Road

Student Loan Interest 100% Tax-Deductible for All Marylanders Making Less Than $200,000, and Tuition Growth Capped at State Colleges & Universities

Incentives to Create Thousands of Jobs, STEM Education Funding, Workforce Development & Cyber Initiatives

$65 Million Investment to grow jobs in green industries, promote the use of electric vehicles, invest in renewable energy innovations, and promote clean water commerce.

Tucker Slams 'Hoax' Group Claiming to Pay Protesters at Trump Inauguration

A man claiming to be the chairman of a group that collectively pays protesters millions of dollars a year discussed his alleged "business" with Tucker Carlson.

The man, who could not produce identification to the Fox News Los Angeles bureau, said his name was "Dom Tullipso" and said he runs "Demand Protest", which allegedly pays individuals to protest at events.

Prior to the interview, "Tullipso" said, his group was paying people to disrupt the inauguration ceremony for President-elect Donald Trump.

"This is a sham, your company isn't real, your website is fake," Carlson said, "This is a hoax. [Tullipso] is not your real name; we ran you through law enforcement-level background checks."

More- http://insider.foxnews.com/2017/01/17/tucker-carlson-slams-hoax-protester-group-dom-tullipso-demand-protests-manning

Two More Major Problems For Social Security & Medicare

Not too long ago my step-dad had to spend a few days in intensive care. Pretty scary stuff.

He had just about every nasty symptom imaginable, from constant vomiting to dizziness to ultra-high fever, but the doctors couldn’t figure out why.

Fortunately his condition improved enough that he was released from the hospital, and now he’s on the mend.

Now, my step-dad is a Medicare patient. But he just found out that he’s been unceremoniously dropped by his Primary Care doctor.

Apparently his physician dropped all of her Medicare patients in one giant culling.

It turns out that physicians across the country have been firing Medicare patients; and according to a late 2015 study from the Kaiser Family Foundation, 21% of physicians are not taking new Medicare patients.

Much of this trend is based on stiff penalties and financial disincentives from the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), and 2015’s Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization (MACRA) Act.

MACRA in particular is completely mystifying.

The law created a whopping 2,400 pages of regulations that Medicare physicians are expected to know and follow.

Many of the rules are debilitating.

For instance, MACRA changed how physicians can be reimbursed for their Medicare patients by establishing a bizarre set of standards to determine if a physician is providing “value”.

As an example, if a patient ends up in the emergency room, his or her physician can incur a steep penalty.

This explains why my step-dad was dropped by his doctor.

The healthcare system has been broken to the point that physicians now have a greater incentive to fire their Medicare patients than to treat them.

One Florida-based physician summed up the situation like this:

Black Lives Matter activists aim to 'reclaim' MLK as radical

The civil rights hero Martin Luther King Jr. famously pursued equality through peaceful protest, but many 21st century activists have said they want to "reclaim" him under a different image: as a forceful "radical."

The Chicago branch of Black Lives Matter pushed the #ReclaimMLK hashtag on Twitter, claiming Martin Luther King Day would allow activists to "engage about the real radical King they don't want you to know about!"

"We do King a disservice when we try to tell a flat story of turning the other cheek," said 31-year-old Charlene Carruthers, national director of the Black Youth Project 100 in Chicago. "It was never simply that."

More

Week One: 437th Session is Now Open

Back in Session, Working for You

The 437th Legislative Session in Maryland commenced on Wednesday, January 11th. It is great to be back in Annapolis with my fellow colleagues and I am looking forward to a productive session.

For those of you who have not heard, Bunky Luffman, who worked in the office from my first day, has taken a position in the Governor’s office. However, our intern from last session Brittany
Finamore, has stepped up to fill the position. Our intern this session is Jacob Lutz, a student at Salisbury University.

I have retained my place on the Environment and Transportation Committee and the environment subcommittee, however, I have moved from the local government subcommittee to the transportation subcommittee this session. Having these assignments will allow me to push helpful transportation legislation and fight against bills that would attempt to over regulate our farmers.

This legislation session is going to be extremely busy, so we have been working on preparing bills and meeting with colleagues. Two of the bills I will submit would restore highway user revenues and allow residents of Wicomico County to deer hunt on the second Sunday of the deer firearms season on private property.
Highway User Revenues
I am submitting two bills that will restore municipal and county highway user revenues. This would not only assist the current needs of road maintenance but it would also establish a long-term source of funding for future transportation projects without any tax increases.

The two proposed bills will allow my colleagues to come together and decide which method is the best at tackling this ongoing issue. The first bill would use a fixed amount each year and the second would set a percentage amount.

 
Sunday Deer Hunting
Wicomico County has asked the County Delegation to propose legislation that will extend deer hunting on private property to the second Sunday during the deer firearms season in Wicomico County.

Deer hunting is a time-honored family tradition on Delmarva and is often passed down from one generation to the next. With successful passage of this bill, we would be able to gain an extra day for everyone to participate.

The coming week is highlighted by our celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr Day and the release of Governor Hogan’s budget. Things will start to become more hectic as the committee meetings begin.

As always, if you would like to contact us with an idea, issue, or concern, please either call: 410-841-3431 or email carl.anderton@house.state.md.us.

We look forward to hearing from you!

THOMAS PAINE 18 JAN 2017

In case you wondered about whether the media is truly impartial in their reporting...read this, especially the next to last paragraph...disgusting....This from Politico... Apparently more fake news is coming from the mainstream media...We must boycott sources determined to be biased. It is the only way to make them shape up. If President-Elect Donald J. Trump actually does something wrong...report on it from all sides, same with everyone else. We cannot trust our media today. They feed us what they decide to tell us in editorial meetings.

Enough is enough. Send a shockwave in the media's general direction. Tell them you expect better, then tune them out for a while. Punish them economically. It will bring them to their senses eventually... CNN has clowned themselves. NBC, MSNBC, ABC, CBS and even FOX. Haven't you had enough? Insist they all be truly fair and balanced in their NEWS reporting. Opinion shows are another matter as long as they don't try to sell opinion as news...Opinion as news...A CNN specialty. SO...from Politico...pay particular attention to the next to last paragraph.

"In his own way, Trump has set us free," writes Jack Shafer in Politico. "Reporters must treat Inauguration Day as a kind of Liberation Day to explore news outside the usual Washington circles. He has been explicit in his disdain for the press and his dislike for press conferences, prickly to the nth degree about being challenged and known for his vindictive way with those who cross him. So, forget about the White House press room. It's time to circle behind enemy lines."

"Let's thank the incoming president for simplifying our mission. If Trump's idea of a news conference is to spank the press, if his lieutenants believe the press needs shutting down, if his chief of staff wants to speculate about moving the White House press scrum off the premises, perhaps reporters ought to take the hint and prepare to cover his administration on their own terms. Instead of relying exclusively on the traditional skills of political reporting, the carriers of press cards ought to start thinking of covering Trump's Washington like a war zone, where conflict follows conflict, where the fog prevents the collection of reliable information directly from the combatants, where the assignment is a matter of life or death."

As Trump shuts down White House access to reporters, they will infest the departments and agencies around town that the president has peeved. The intelligence establishment, which Trump has deprecated over the issue of Russian hacking, owes him no favors and less respect. It will be in their institutional interest to leak damaging material on Trump. Ditto the Pentagon, the State Department, the FBI, and even conventionally newsless outposts like Transportation and Labor."

"Like Nixon, Trump may have won a sizeable audience with his anti-press frothings. But he remains unpopular with at least half of the nation, and they constitute an eager audience for critical reporting," writes Shafer.

"The harder Trump rides the press—and he gives no sign of dismounting—the higher he elevates reporters in the estimation of many voters. It's not winter that’s coming with the inauguration of Trump. It's journalistic spring."

Punish them.

"The mind once enlightened, cannot again become dark."

Yours in the Constitution,
Thomas Paine