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Thursday, June 29, 2017

This Is What Happens When The Pavement Is Too Hot For Your Dog


All-over-it dog lovers know the basics of keeping dogs safe in summer: Bring lots of water with you on walks, watch for the signs of your dog overheating and never, ever, ever leave a dog in the car - even on days that don't seem that warm.

But it might come as a surprise to even the most type-A pup owners that the very pavement beneath your dog's paws could be sizzling hot. And hot pavement can have gruesome and painful consequences.

"Asphalt gets very hot and can burn your pet's paws, so walk your dog on the grass if possible," the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) urged. But sometimes it can be hard to tell.

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CNN producer: Trump 'probably right' about Russian 'witch hunt'

A producer for CNN admitted in a newly released undercover video that President Trump is "probably right" in accusing his opponents of engaging in a witch hunt as it relates to collusion with Russia.

The video, published online Monday night by conservative sting activist James O'Keefe's Project Veritas website, shows John Bonifield, a CNN producer who covers medical issues, saying, "I just feel like they really don't have it [proof of collusion] but they want to keep digging."

He continued, "And so I think the president is probably right to say, ‘Look, you are witch hunting me.'"

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Budweiser | A Dream Delivered | Folds of Honor

Video Games Aren't Good for You

Why conservatives and libertarians view video games differently.

For most of their history, video games were a fringe pastime, the loser kid brother to traditional entertainments like sports. Gamers were doughy nerds who subsisted on Doritos and Mountain Dew and feared women and sunshine.

But over the past decade, video games have achieved something of a societal coup. Piggybacking off the rise of smartphones and social media, gaming has swung with lightning speed into total ubiquity. Businessmen play them on the subway. Kids play them in school. Korean teens become millionaires playing them. Your grandmother is probably still playing Candy Crush.

Journalists play them, too, which is why they’ve recently subjected the public to a deluge of scribblingjustifying the habit. Over at Reason, Peter Suderman has given us the mother of all such pieces:“Young Men Are Playing Video Games Instead of Getting Jobs. That’s OK. (For Now.)”

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A Message From Officer Tommy M Norman

Will Illinois Need a Federal Bailout?

Its residents had better hope not.

A question no one’s asked out loud with regard to the ongoing Illinois state budget negotiations is what happens if—or when—the state becomes unable or unwilling to pay its bills a few years down the road.

It’s clearly on the minds of investors who own Illinois debt: Theprice of the state’s bonds has been falling and the rating agencies recently downgraded its debt to just one step above junk. Both of these are proximate responses to the state’s budget impasse, which is entering its third year.

But another reason for the growing wariness of investors toward Illinois debt emanates from developments in Puerto Rico, which asked for and received legislation from the federal government to assist with its debt burden.

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The $100 billion per year back pain industry is mostly a hoax

Anyone who has endured back pain knows it is an erratic dictator. It takes hold of your psyche, demanding your attention and devotion before all else—before you can plan a hike, return to a work routine, pick up your child for a hug. So when someone offers to make that dictator disappear, it’s hard to resist—no matter what the price.

“People in pain are poor decision-makers,” says the investigative journalist Cathryn Jakobson Ramin, author of a new book, Crooked: Outwitting the Back Pain Industry and Getting on the Road to Recovery.

Millions such bad decisions, she argues, have fueled a $100-billion-per-year back pain industry in the US—one that’s largely selling Americans wrong and even dangerous responses to back discomfort. These include unnecessary painkillers, injections, surgeries, and chiropractic “adjustments.”

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**Update-Bicyclist Succumbs to Injuries** State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit Investigating Serious Crash-Millsboro


Millsboro– A 72-year-old bicyclist involved in crash with a tractor-trailer on June 15, 2017 has died as a result of his injuries.

Kenneth Tull of Delmar, Maryland died Wednesday June 28, 2017 at Christiana Hospital.

The Collision Reconstruction Unit is continuing their investigation into this incident. If anyone may have witnessed this crash, they are asked to contact Corporal N. Demalto of the Collision Reconstruction Unit at 302-703-3267. Information may also be provided by calling Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333, via the internet at www.delaware.crimestoppersweb.com, or by sending an anonymous tip by text to 274637 (CRIMES) using the keyword “DSP.”

Please click to view original release - State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit Investigating Serious Crash-Millsboro

SALISBURY MAN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS FOR FIRST DEGREE MURDER

AAPD Search For Murder Suspect After Victim Dies From Injuries

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION DIVISION
MAJOR CRIMES SECTION

Homicide Jessup

On Saturday, June 17, 2017 at approximately 10:10 a.m., members of the Howard County Police Department responded for an injured subject in the 5900 block Stevens Forest Road, Columbia, Maryland. An unresponsive adult male victim was located in a vehicle with trauma to the upper body. The victim was identified as Fredy Roberto Lopez-Martinez a twenty-nine year old male from the 5900 block of Stevens Forest Road, Columbia, Maryland. The victim was transported to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Hospital for treatment of his injuries.

Safety of probation officers in Delaware "ignored," according to FOP Lodge President

Is the Department of Correction doing enough to ensure the safety of Delaware's probation and parole officers?

Todd Mumford, President of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 10, the collective bargaining agency for probation and parole officers in Delaware, claims the DOC has "ignored" requests to improve the safety and well-being of probation and patrol officers in the First State.

Several probation and parole officers have been injured in the line-of-duty throughout Delaware, most recently a probation officer was grazed by a bullet while conducting an administrative search in Wilmington.

Mumford is speaking out and demanding action. He fears that one of his fellow officers will die if nothing is done, which he said seems to be the only way change occurs in Delaware.

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President Trump is justifiably angry about Democrats’ baseless accusations

By Ellen Sauerbrey

How is this for a strategy? Concoct a conspiracy to explain an unexpected election loss, put a cloud over the head of the elected president and his agenda, drag out an investigation for months, stir up hopes of impeachment, and then charge obstruction of justice when the subject of the mudslinging attempts to clear his name.

The strategy has now morphed into an investigation of what the president did or said in response to an investigation of an underlying crime that never existed.

After months of digging there is not a shred of evidence that President Trump colluded with Russia. He was told by FBI Director James Comey three times that he was not a subject of investigation. Nevertheless, for months a collusion was occurring. Anonymous leakers, left-wing media and Democratic politicians colluded to promote a false narrative to smear the president and obstruct his agenda from moving forward.

It is hardly surprising that the president, knowing the Russian collusion story was false, asked Mr. Comey and perhaps others in the intelligence community if they could tell the public what they were telling the president privately and remove the cloud.

Mr. Comey refused to go public with what he knew to be true. Instead, he stood silent in the face of a barrage of fake media stories that he later admitted to a congressional committee were “dead wrong.” He was willing to let the president of the United States dangle in the wind while others continued to lob lies at him. Mr. Comey revealed his motive to continue damaging the president by telling the congressional committee that he leaked a memo about his conversation with the president to the media, in order to achieve appointment of a special counsel.

Failing to find evidence of collusion, Democrats during a public hearing hardly raised a Russia question but instead shifted their fire to obstruction of justice. And what are the charges leading some to call for impeachment and worse?

• After facing months of leaks and false stories, the president had the temerity to ask for loyalty. Wow, now that is really grounds for obstruction of justice.!

· The president hoped for leniency for a general who had given a lifetime of service to this country, had been fired and who, after an FBI review of communications with the Russian ambassador, had already been found to have committed no wrongdoing. Though it was within President. Trump’s constitutional right to end the investigation of Michael Flynn altogether, he did not do that. Was this obstruction, or not wanting to kick a man who was already down?

• The president fired the FBI director, as Mr. Comey acknowledged he had every right to do constitutionally. Mr. Trump could have handled the firing more diplomatically, but there was no good time to fire Mr. Comey, who had to go. Many of those who are howling for the president’s scalp for that decision were calling for Mr. Comey’s head just a few months ago.

· As President Trump tweeted, “They made up a phony collusion with the Russians story, found zero proof, so now they go for obstruction of justice on the phony story.” A frustrated president, convinced of his innocence, has reacted in a very human way that has sometimes been unwise, but certainly not criminal.

If the shoe was on the other foot, Democratic officeholders, from sea to shining sea, would be defending their president and demanding an end to the partisanship and waste of the taxpayer’s money on a phony investigation.

And where are the Republicans? Hiding in the bushes or, like Sen. John McCain, taking potshots at their own lawfully elected president. The best way to protect their seats in the next election is to cancel their recess and demonstrate some urgency in addressing the key issues that Americans voted for last year — tax cuts, growing the economy and fixing the broken health care system.

This investigation is just a fishing expedition to take down a president and prevent the passage of his agenda. It is a witch hunt, and it is time to end it.

Ellen Sauerbrey is a former minority leader of the Maryland House of Delegates.

Driver Arrested After Running Over Ten Commandments Monument

OKLAHOMA CITY — An update to news we have been covering since last week.

Michael Tate Reed, 29, of Roland, was formally charged today with the destruction of state property / improvements, indecent exposure, making threatening statements, reckless driving, and operating a vehicle while license revoked.

Reed was also charged with four counts of felony assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, which stemmed from incidents that occurred during his initial emergency order of detention on Friday.

"This incident has the full attention of my office. We take this matter very seriously and are reviewing exactly what took place and areas we can improve. Our goal is public safety, any modifications to our security procedures we make in the future will be in pursuit of that goal", stated Chief of Patrol Colonel Ricky Adams.

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Black Unemployment at Lowest Rate in 17 Years

In the months since Donald Trump became America's 45th president, the unemployment rate among black people has hit the lowest number since 2000.

In February, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported the black unemployment rate at 8.1, but the number dropped to 8.0 in March, 7.9 in April, and 7.5 in May.

During most of Barack Obama's presidency, black unemployment was in double digits, hitting a high mark of 16.8 in March 2010. Between July 2008 (during the financial crisis) and February 2015, the rate remained above 10 percent.

Black unemployment has not been this low since December 2000, when 7.4 percent of African-Americans looking for work were unable to find it.

This good news should be taken with a grain of salt, however, because the workforce participation rate remained low in May, at 62.7 percent. It is possible that many people stopped looking for work, just as others found good jobs.

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Mexico Joins The Legal Battle Against Anti-Sanctuary City Law

Mexico filed an affidavit Monday in support of a lawsuit against the implementation of a Texas law to punish sanctuary cities and allow police officers to inquire about the immigration status of someone they have arrested or detained.

The Mexican government said in a statement that the law could increase racial discrimination and create an environment of persecution.

The statement said that the number of calls to the center for information and assistance for Mexicans in Texas in May and June increased 678 percent compared to the year prior. This is reflexive of the uncertainty and “anguish” that the Mexican community in Texas has felt due to the law.

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Proximity Is Destiny In America's Pay-To-Play Democracy

Privilege is unearned proximity to power in all its manifestations.

My friend G.F.B. recently coined an insightful maxim: Proximity Is Destiny. The power of this concept lies in its unification of physical proximity and abstract proximity.

We all understand physical proximity can be consequential. As the Titanic settled lower in the ice-cold Atlantic, those close enough to the lifeboats to secure a seat (mostly the first and second class passengers) lived and those who were not died.

College graduates seek internships at the most successful companies because they know the connections they make by working within the headquarters might lead to a job offer: physical proximity to movers and shakers (and those with the power to hire) is destiny.

But proximity to abstract manifestations of power is even more consequential in an economy/society in which wealth and power are predominantly abstract. For example, getting an internship in the Federal Reserve doesn't mean you can obtain proximity to the Fed's money/credit spigot as a result of your physical proximity to the building or staff: the really powerful proximity--being close to the Fed's money/credit spigot--is entirely abstract.

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Suspects Arrested In Boardwalk Ice Cream Store Burglary

OCEAN CITY — Two men were arrested last week after video surveillance footage connected them to the burglary of a Boardwalk ice cream parlor.

On June 15, Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officers responded to the area of 12th Street and the Boardwalk for a reported burglary of an ice cream shop. The store owner told police his shop had been burglarized sometime between 12:30 a.m. and 6 a.m. and several items had been stolen including a safe with roughly a week’s worth of sales in it. The store owner also advised police he had video surveillance of the suspects.

The OCPD detective watched the video surveillance and observed two men later identified as Joshua Skidmore, 19, and Troy Jones, 22, both of Catonsville, enter the store around 3:30 a.m. The two suspects entered the business via a roll-up door that faces the Boardwalk. They entered the business by opening the door and then closing it behind them.

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Are Illinois & Puerto Rico Our Future?

If Gov. Bruce Rauner and his legislature in Springfield do not put a budget together by Friday, the Land of Lincoln will be the first state in the Union to see its debt plunge into junk-bond status.

Illinois has $14.5 billion in overdue bills, $130 billion in unfunded pension obligations, and no budget. “We can’t manage our money,” says Rauner. “We’re like a banana republic.”

Speaking of banana republics, Puerto Rico, which owes $74 billion to creditors who hold its tax-exempt bonds, and $40 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, has already entered bankruptcy proceedings.

The island’s imaginative 38-year-old governor, Ricardo Rossello, however, has a solution. Call Uncle Sam. On June 11, Rossello held a plebiscite, with a 23 percent turnout, that voted 97 percent to make Puerto Rico our 51st state.

“(T)he federal government will no longer be able to ignore the voice of the majority of the American citizens in Puerto Rico,” said Rossello. Washington cannot “demand democracy in other parts of the world, and not respond to the legitimate right to self-determination that was exercised today in the American territory of Puerto Rico.”

Had the governor been talking about the island’s right to become free and independent, he would have had a point. But statehood inside the USA is something Uncle Sam decides.

Rossello calls to mind Count Mountjoy of Grand Fenwick, who, in “The Mouse that Roared,” plotted to rescue his bankrupt duchy by declaring war on the U.S., sailing to America to surrender, and then demanding the foreign aid America bestows on defeated enemies.

Yet Puerto Rico’s defaults on its debts may soon be our problem. Many bond funds in which Americans have invested their savings and retirement money are full of Puerto Rican bonds.

According to The New York Times, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern Marianas and Guam are in the same boat. With 100,000 people, the Virgin Islands owe $6.5 billion to pensioners and creditors.

Then there is Connecticut, a state that has long ranked in the top tier in per capita income and wealth.

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Modest Changes Coming to Maryland’s Commercial Crab Harvest


Following weeks of scientific review and discussion among key 


stakeholders, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources is making modest but important changes to the commercial harvesting of Chesapeake Bay female hard crabs later this season.

Harvesting will close Nov. 20, and bushel levels for the month of November will be reduced compared to the previous harvest year.

These modifications are based on the results of the 2016-17 Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey, and subsequent review and approval by the Blue Crab Industry Advisory Committee and Tidal Fisheries Advisory Commission.

“Since the release of the winter dredge survey, experts have cautioned that a scarcity of juvenile crabs could result in more challenging harvest conditions later this year and next,” said Natural Resources Secretary Mark Belton. “This decision is the result of partners in science and industry developing consensus to achieve what is best for the health and ongoing productivity of the Chesapeake Bay blue crab fishery.”

You can review the Public Notice here.

REX Has Been Found!

LostPetPR

FOUND SAFE THURSDAY MORNING!!

Rex went missing following a bad accident on Route 611 in Berlin, MD on June 19th. His owner launched an amazing and dedicated search to cover all critical elements of finding a lost pet (flyers, signs, diligently searching, etc) and we couldn't be happier for them. All the hard work paid off when Rex was found this morning near an area determined to have likely been his safe hiding spot for the last ten days. We are so thrilled for Rex and his mom!!

Have to thank the awesome folks over at the Worcester County Humane Society for all they do. Their help, outreach and assistance absolutely played a huge part in this recovery and they are certainly an incredible group of people.

It's also important for us to give a mention to Pure Gold Pet Trackers who we have recommended to a number of our owners over the years. While we haven't met in person the situations they have come out here for did lead to recovery or closure for several difficult cases. Having those owners tell us how they "needed to know", and that their tracking dogs were able to provide answers or offer hope to continue a search is extremely important, and in this case we believe it confirmed that Rex was still in the area. Great work by so many parties on this effort!!

Roundup's main ingredient goes on list as cancerous

Officials in Fresno, California announced Monday that starting on July 7 the weed killer's main ingredient, glyphosate, will appear on a list the state keeps of potentially cancerous chemicals.

Adding the chemical to the list is a pivotal step toward California becoming the first state to require the popular weed killer Roundup to come with a label warning that it is known to cause cancer.

However, it's not certain whether Roundup will ultimately get a warning label.

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Condoleezza Rice: Trump stands for American values

Condoleezza Rice: Trump may sound different but puts America first

President Donald Trump may sound different than other presidents, but he believes in American values and tries to act in the best interest of the United States, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told CNBC on Wednesday.

"I believe every president of the United States stands for our values," said Rice, who served as secretary of State and national security advisor during the presidency of George W. Bush. "You heard President Trump say, for instance, after the Syrian chemical attack, we can't let that stand. What he was saying was the president of the United States can't let that stand."

From the sidelines of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship and KPMG Women's Leadership Summit at the Olympia Fields Country Club in Illinois, Rice said on "Squawk Box" Trump knows the importance of alliances and expects him to forge ties with Democracies around the world.

"While the language may be different, and we might talk about needing to deal with policy, I think you're going to see ... that Americans' interests in values are always linked," Rice said.

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Sara Huckabee Sanders Calls Out Fake News Media

Ten Commandments monument at Arkansas Capitol toppled, shattered

A 6-foot-tall stone Ten Commandments monument installed Tuesday on the Arkansas Capitol grounds was toppled less than 24 hours later after a 32-year-old Arkansas man drove a vehicle into the statue, apparently while streaming the act live on Facebook, officials said.

Chris Powell, a spokesman with the secretary of state's office, said he was called early Wednesday and told a man drove a vehicle through the monument. That driver — identified in an arrest report as Michael Tate Reed of Van Buren — was arrested by Capitol police shortly after, Powell said. News reports indicate Reed was previously accused of destroying a Ten Commandments monument in Oklahoma.

More here

Charges filed against FBI agent involving death of LaVoy Finicum


Investigators have concluded that police were justified in shooting Robert “LaVoy” Finicum last year, a rancher who was involved in the occupation and standoff at an Oregon wildlife refuge.

However, charges have been filed against an FBI agent for lying about his role in the shooting. FBI agent W. Joseph Astarita pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday, according to The Oregonian.

Astarita, 40, was indicted on five counts – he has been charged with three counts of making a false statement and two counts of obstruction of justice.

The indictment reads: “Defendant acted with the intent to hinder, delay and prevent the communication of information from the Oregon State Police to the Federal Bureau of Investigation relating to the possible commission of a federal offense.”

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University of Maryland Police Called Over ‘Noose’ That Turned Out to Be Plastic Wrap

University of Maryland students called the police Tuesday over an alleged "noose" left near the campus' fraternity row.

"Earlier today, we were notified of a knotted piece of plastic wrap laying on the ground in the 7500 block of Baltimore Ave.," the school's police department said in a statement. "An officer met with two individuals who were walking south when they noticed the item. Police were notified out of concern for possible hate-bias."

The department noted that "preliminary investigation reveals that this type of material is used to contain and protect loose items during transport," but said that officers would continue the investigation "out of an abundance of caution."

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Former National Security Adviser Susan Rice Says She's a Victim of Racism and Sexism

Former national security adviser and UN ambassador Susan Rice refuses to go quietly into retirement, even though she remains one of the most controversial figures of the Obama Administration.

Now, thanks to a glowing profile in New York Magazine, we know that despite Susan Rice’s very public shortcomings (whatever happened to that dastardly filmmaker who spurred violence across the Middle East, anyway?), she believes any criticism of her tenure is at least partly the result of racism and sexism.
When asked why she became a “target” in the Trump Administration, she replied, “I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this. What do you think?…I do not leap to the simple explanation that it’s only about race and gender. I’m trying to keep my theories to myself until I’m ready to come out with them. It’s not because I don’t have any.”


But, she goes on to imply, Trump—and the rest of his administration, for that matter —doesn’t seem to like people of her race and gender.

And she feels personally violated by the continued interest by Trump and others in her actions as both a National Security Adviser and as a diplomat. All of her major achievements —the non-binding Paris Climate Accord, the new relationship with Cuba, and the Iranian nuclear deal—have been walked back by Trump. And she thinks that’s a personal jab at her and not simply a new administration rolling back hastily made and ineffective policy.

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Surprise! Seattle's Minimum Wage Charade Is Making People Poorer

As the old expression states, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. In 2014, Seattle decided to lead the way “forward” in the attempt to impose the leftist utopian dream of creating a “livable” minimum wage for all. Largely ignoring sound warnings from seasoned economists, Seattle pressed on with its crusade, passing a progressive increase to the minimum wage with the goal of eventually reaching $15 per hour by 2017 and 2019 respectively for large and small businesses. So has Seattle been able to defy all conventional economic wisdom and raise a greater number of individuals out of poverty with its mandatory minimum wage hike?

A recently released study from the University of Washington appears to be throwing a well-deserved bucket of cold water on Seattle’s pipe dream. Researchers found that low-income workers saw their overall pay decrease, as companies either cut hours or cut the number of employees..

More here

Two Top House Dems Accused Of Ethics Violations

Democrats have been having a rough time lately as the phony Russia collusion narrative crumbles (with a little help from noted fake news purveyor CNN) while some of the party’s most venerated officials are facing allegations of misconduct – be it for colluding with the Clinton campaign (Loretta Lynch) or for allegedly submitting a fraudulent loan application and improperly pressuring a regional lender (Bernie and Jane Sanders).

Add to that list Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) who as the Hill reports are facing possible ethics infractions and will appear before a panel at the recommendation of the Office of Congressional Ethics. The OCE is an independent, bipartisan group that examines ethics complaints and forwards what it considers the most serious cases to the Ethics Committee.

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Every High School Principal Should Say This

Would you support a principal that gave this speech?

88.7 The Bridge adds longtime Eastern Shore radio personality to staff


Ohio councilman: After 2 overdoses, no more EMS

An Ohio town has been so overwhelmed by drug overdose emergencies that a councilman proposed a three-strikes penalty so EMS would not respond to an overdose victim who has required two previous interventions.

Middletown City Council member Dan Picard told the local Journal-News that arresting those who overdose on heroin or other drugs adds to the problem by straining the city budget, jail and court system.

“John Smith obviously doesn’t care much about his life, but he’s expending a lot of resources and we can’t afford it,” Picard said.

City Manager Douglas Adkins didn't immediately weigh in on the proposal, but he says that under state law "when we are called to render aid, we generally have to treat whatever condition we encounter." And the state's Good Samaritan law, designed to encourage people to report overdoses, prohibits police from arresting people onsite for the heroin-related activity, Adkins said.

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Florida teens who 'stole a Porsche and $200k' pictured

Six teenage boys, aged between 14 and 16, are accused of stealing a Porsche and $200,000 during a Florida burglary - before blowing the cash on gold jewelry and teeth, and high end cars for themselves and their mothers.

The teens; Rural Scott, 15, Jeremiah Laplace, 15, Michael Bush, 14, Joshua Sargeant, 14, Shomari Smith, 14, and Walter Walker, 16, all from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, were charged with burglary and grand theft this week.

A St. Lucie County Sheriff's report said the group, who each have a long rap sheet despite their young ages, were all in custody in other jurisdictions in connection with other crimes when they were arrested Monday following a two-month investigation.

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Obama Backdoor Amnesty Provided ‘U visas’ For 140,000 Illegal Aliens

President Barack Obama’s deputies hugely expanded a little-known “crime visa” program to help roughly 140,000 illegal aliens obtain amnesty and U.S. citizenship.

The U visa program was created by the Battered Immigrant Women Protection Act within the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000. It offers visas and eventually citizenship to illegal aliens who testify in court against criminals.

Supposedly, the program was limited to 10,000 visas per year. But Obama’s lax regulations encouraged a huge number of illegals to file for U visas — and also allowed many illegals to get residency and work permits years before they receive the actual U visa.

This year, Democratic officials are still trying to use the “U visa” program to help illegal aliens dodge President Donald Trump’s policy of enforcing immigration law. For example, a Texas sheriff is encouraging illegals in Travis County to file for U visas so judges can block their enforced return home.

More here

New Device Allows Cops To Download All Of Your Smartphone Activity In Seconds

“Any person who operates a motor vehicle in the state shall be deemed to have given consent to field testing of his or her mobile telephone and/or personal electronic device for the purpose of determining the use thereof while operating a motor vehicle, provided that such testing is conducted by or at the direction of a police officer.”

That’s language from the text of a bill currently working its way through the New York state legislature. The legislation would allow cops to search through drivers’ cell phones following traffic incidents — even minor fender-benders — to determine if the person was using their phone while behind the wheel.

Most states have laws banning the use of mobile devices while driving, though such laws are rarely enforced. This is largely because it’s nearly impossible to catch someone in the act. What person would admit to an officer that they broke the law, the argument goes, particularly when it’s after the fact? After all, cops don’t show up until after the accident occurs.

Now, technology exists that would give police the power to plug drivers’ phones into tablet-like devices — being called “textalyzers” in the media — that tell officers exactly what they were doing on their phone and exactly when they were doing it. And if the readout shows a driver was texting while driving, for instance, the legal system will have an additional way to fine them.

“Recording your every click, tap or swipe, it would even know what apps you were using. Police officers could download the data, right on the spot,” Jeff Rossen of NBC News said in a video report on the technology.

Proponents of the legislation point to the rise in traffic fatalities associated with using mobile devices while driving. But rights activists, such as Rashida Richardson of the New York Civil Liberties Union, says it’s a societal issue and no excuse to violate an individual’s privacy:

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House of Representatives Passes Medical Liability Reform

WASHINGTON, DC: On June 28, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1215, the Protecting Access to Care Act (PACA), by a 218-210 vote. This medical liability reform legislation will prevent lawsuit abuse by capping noneconomic damages and limiting contingency fees for attorneys. Dr. Andy Harris (MD-01) released the following statement in support of the legislation and passage:

“PACA is a victory for patients that will increase access to high quality medical care and reduce health care costs. Lawsuit abuse forces physicians to practice defensive medicine, meaning that patients undergo unnecessary and expensive treatments to reduce the risk of litigation. This legislation will provide balanced protections for both patients and their providers, improve the quality of health care, lower the cost of premiums, and save the federal taxpayer tens of billions of dollars. This is a commonsense solution to lower the cost of care, and should have been passed under the Obama Administration years ago.”

Maryland Divided Part 2: Western Maryland fracking fight reveals divergent economic visions

As Maryland’s rural counties lose farmland, consider fracking and face economic challenges, the Capital News Service at the University of Maryland Philip Merrill College of Journalism presents a series examining the political divide between urban and rural parts of Maryland and the state of the economy in rural Maryland. This is the second part in a five-part series.
 

By J.F. Meils
Capital News Service


CUMBERLAND — Allegany and Garrett, the state’s two westernmost counties, tend to be lumped together as “Mountain Maryland,” their problems similar, their prospects equally muddled.

But the two counties’ economic issues — and their approaches to solving them — differ starkly.

In Allegany, many problems stem from the legacy of past reliance on “whales,” big employers with large numbers of good-paying jobs that lay waste to communities when they leave. In Garrett, a place that has always relied on natural resources to power its economy, the question is not whether to keep doing that, but how.

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It's time to apologize to Trump over Russia

The constant drumbeat by the Left and the liberal media is really getting old. The never-ending push to link President Trump to Russia is not only absurd but even has many Democrats urging party leaders to stop talking about Russia.

Let’s not forget how this really began. Just weeks ago, fired FBI Director James Comey admitted under oath that he leaked privileged documents to a friend to give to reporters at the New York Times. Memos that he had written in the course of his official government duties about privileged conversations with the president.

The reason: Comey testified that he did so to manipulate the situation and force the appointment of a Special Counsel. And, as we know – that’s ultimately what occurred.

Since that testimony, there have been news reports indicating that President Obama actually knew about the attempts by Russian President Vladimir Putin to disrupt and discredit the U.S. presidential race through a cyber campaign.

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http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017/06/28/its-time-to-apologize-to-trump-over-russia.html

Salisbury's City Hall's Disingenuous Fight against Hate Crime

By Thornton Crowe

Tuesday produced many moments of upset towards Mayor Jake Day and his administration, which these days, is not an unusual occurrence considering everyday, there seems to be one event after another. The fact his group posted some rubbish about Hate Crimes in Salisbury goes to show the Democrats way of subverting your attention from things like unfinished construction endeavors and gross mismanagement with illegal budgets. For savvy political animals, these actions are easy to detect; however, for people who take a fleeting interest, it seems like a chain of unrelated instances.

Democrats always tread on the race deal because they know there's a certain part of the population who, unbeknownst to them, are being used as pawns without merit or genuine concern for their well-being. They are easily incited to rebel pitch whenever race is accentuated in any argument - it is a trigger. Liberals use this soft spot to manipulate for support where they wouldn't if they actually voiced their positions. Therefore, white privilege is a wonderful fabrication they use often in order to disrupt the masses and make them believe something is there when there's just a huge Nothingburger.

The post about Civil Rights was just such an event to make folks like you and I  believe Salisbury is in some pre-1950s mentality where social injustice was happening everywhere. However, one stroll through either Walmart in town quickly debunks this claim and bares it false witness.

The real hate crime in Salisbury right now is City Hall's blatant discrimination against members of the community who don't travel in Day's social circle. When hiring for the Deputy City Administer jobs, friends with Jake and Julia Glanz curried much more favor than those of mere strangers, regardless of qualifications. These two newly-created jobs were nothing more than a way to get buddies employed while leaving many fine grad school graduates from SU overlooked. Wondering how Dr. Dudley Eshbach feels about the City ignoring her graduates.

Speaking of which, Jake and his clown posse didn't seem all concerned with racism and SU's flagrant ignorance of the Noose image when it was simply ignored after learning two black girls were the perpetrators. It might've been a useful tool if the perps were white, but that was not meant to be. So like good Democrats, the mayor's staff moved on without so much as a peep in protest.

Racism actually starts in the Mayor's office. Note: Jake, Julia, Chris and now the two new Deputy City Administrators are all as white as saltine crackers. How's that for real white privilege? Oh, sorry, another inconvenient factoid they'd like for you to ignore.

While it may momentarily upset you with the latest clown car trick, please keep in mind they're playing on your emotions to divert you from their own gross incompetence in their governance over Salisbury. Don't fall for the big red horn political tricks because now you know the truth about them. Don't be chumps! It only makes them laugh with glee when they see their trickery has illicit your angst over non-existent fodder.

Keep eyes on the prize: Keep holding them accountable for all the jobs they're not doing instead of their political ploys, complete with disco lights!

Theater That Put On Trump Assassination Play Gets New $100,000 Grant

The Public Theater in New York has received an additional $100,000 grant from the federal government, fresh off its controversy for staging a Julius Caesar production where a Donald Trump lookalike is assassinated.

Just days after controversy over the graphic mock Trump killing began, the National Endowment for the Arts announced its newest round of grants.

The Public Theater received $100,000 for its New York Shakespeare Festival. This time the theater will do performances of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

The NEA denied that any previous funding went to the production of Julius Caesar..

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Who did that sign at the courthouse in Salisbury?

[Commentary by Tacitus]

Located on the north side of Main Street near its intersection with Division Street, a sign that briefly describes the military record of General John Henry Winder (1800-1865) – West Point, for starters, followed by service in both the U.S. army and the Confederate States army – states near the bottom “Maryland Civil War Centennial Commission,” the organization that caused the marker to be created some 50+ years ago. That organization was formed by the Maryland Legislature back then to memorialize and thereby preserve local aspects of a conflict that many then and now regard as a dispute over the right of states to secede from the Union, which at the time was an unsettled matter not addressed in the U.S. Constitution. Liberals view it as a war to free the slaves, which is an erroneous notion.

That Commission, whose Honorary Chairman was then Governor J. Millard Tawes (of Somerset County), was composed of a number of persons of various backgrounds and views, including former Governor Lane and then U.S. Sen. Charles Mathias. Its Chairman, George Radcliffe, a former U.S. Senator, was from Dorchester County.

As pointed out in Gov. Tawes’ statement in the Commission’s publication, Maryland Remembers, its members sought “to pay tribute to the persons who during the Civil War tried to do their duty as they saw fit.” He also observed that the members “have wisely not attempted to decide who was right and who was wrong … nor to settle other controversial issues.” In short, they wanted to preserve in its entirety a significant chapter of our national history, not just a certain select portion thereof.

That wisdom has now disappeared with the emergence of political opportunists and firebrands who seek to destroy by eradication the part of history they find offensive. Almost daily ancient structures are being demolished by radical Islamic cadres, and that same aggressive and sanctimonious political and cultural correctness has become extent in the United States, where memorials to Confederate figures are being removed from public view and genuine free speech is no longer tolerated and often suppressed, sometimes with violence, on many if not most college campuses and elsewhere.

Wicomico County has seen the emergence of self-styled progressive liberal elites that harken to the likes of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, fomented by so-called local leaders like Jake Day, James Ireton and militants such as Black Lives Matter and its collaborators. Their latest (?) target of opportunity is the historical marker on the courthouse lawn that was created by fair-minded citizens of an earlier time.

The mainstream media reports the nefarious conduct and goals of the current mob and its misfits as if they were essential defenders of democracy. Is it any wonder that the United States is now nearly as polarized as during the Civil War?

Thanks to independent online fora, such as this blog, the moderate voices of reason can still be heard. We must and will prevail over the strident, odious minority whose personal prejudices and animosity are seemingly boundless. A recent episode that demonstrates the power of the people to resist the rabble-rousers and their misguided followers is the decision by Talbot County to maintain the memorial to its citizens who fought for the Confederacy, known as the “Talbot Boys,” on the courthouse lawn in Easton.

Now the rabble-rousers have shifted focus to Salisbury.

11501 Progress Lane, Deal Of The Decade TODAY


House intel panel plans to interview John Podesta

John Podesta, Clinton Campaign Chairman, walks to Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's Washington DC home October 5, 2016 in Washington, District of Columbia.

(CNN)The House intelligence committee next week plans to interview John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign chairman whose hacked email account became central to Russian meddling in the US election last year, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

Podesta will be one of the committee's first major witnesses to meet with the panel behind closed doors as it tries to determine the extent of the Russian involvement in last year's campaign and whether any of President Donald Trump's associates coordinated with the Russians.

The committee sent out requests to interview six witnesses this week, sources said, with Podesta expected to be interviewed next week in a classified session. The committee is expected to question Podesta about the leak of thousands of his emails, which became a political headache and embarrassment for Clinton in the heat of the campaign season.

FBI agent indicted in Ammon Bundy Oregon refuge standoff shooting

Accused of lying about firing at Robert “LaVoy” Finicum in 2016

PORTLAND, Ore.— An FBI agent has been indicted on accusations that he lied about firing at a rancher in 2016 when officers arrested leaders of an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in rural Oregon.

Sources familiar with the case say the agent will face allegations of making a false statement with intent to obstruct justice, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Tuesday.

The indictment stems from more than a yearlong investigation by the U.S. Justice Department inspector general. The agent will be identified when summoned to appear Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland.

Authorities moved in on Ammon Bundy and other leaders as they were driving in two vehicles from the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge to a meeting on Jan. 26, 2016.

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After Breitbart Investigation, CNN Retracts Conspiracy Theory Hit Piece

Very Fake News

CNN has admitted it printed what President Donald Trump calls “very fake news” and retracted a demonstrably inaccurate hit piece on the President and his allies after a Breitbart News investigation uncovered significant inaccuracies and flaws in CNN’s work.

“On June 22, 2017, CNN.com published a story connecting Anthony Scaramucci with investigations into the Russian Direct Investment Fund,” CNN said in a statement late Friday night. “That story did not meet CNN’s editorial standards and has been retracted. Links to the story have been disabled. CNN apologizes to Mr. Scaramucci.”

The statement was sent out very late Friday evening on CNN’s Twitter account.

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The media will do anything to bash Trump — and now they’re hurting

It was many years ago, but the memory lingers of the first time I was embarrassed to be a journalist. It was a steamy summer afternoon and reporters and photographers were shoehorned into a small Manhattan apartment for a civic group’s announcement.

As we waited, a photographer wearing a “Press” card in his battered fedora picked up a bud vase from a table, pulled out the rose and drank the water in one gulp.

The hostess was horrified and shrieked, “What are you doing?” He looked at her as if she were nuts and said simply, “It’s hot in here and I’m thirsty.”

I laugh now at the outlandishness of the photographer’s behavior, but at the time I cringed and wondered: Do I really want to be a journalist and end up like that?

America should be so lucky now. Bad manners are the least of it.

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Father took his five-year-old son to Disneyland and then 'murdered him to get back at his estranged wife for divorce'

A California father murdered his five-year-old son after a trip to Disneyland to get back at his estranged wife after their bitter divorce, police say.

Aramazd Andressian Jr. has been missing for two months and his body has not been found.

But investigators said there is strong circumstantial evidence in the case to prove the boy was killed by his father, Aramazd Andressian Sr.

'I am confident the evidence proves Mr. Andressian committed this horrible crime,' Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said.

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Central Banks Buying Stocks Have Rigged US Stock Market Beyond Recovery

Central banks buying stocks are effectively nationalizing US corporations just to maintain the illusion that their “recovery” plan is working because they have become the banks that are too big to fail. At first, their novel entry into the stock market was only intended to rescue imperiled corporations, such as General Motors during the first plunge into the Great Recession, but recently their efforts have shifted to propping up the entire stock market via major purchases of the most healthy companies on the market.

Brian Rich, writing for Forbes, describes the economic illusion created by central banks buying stocks during a time of presidential prosecution:

The chaos and dysfunction message is loud, but markets aren’t hearing it. The real story is very different. Stocks continue to surge; stock market volatility continues to sit at ten–year (pre–crisis) lows. The interest rate market is much higher than it was before the election, but now quiet and stable. Gold, the fear–of–the–unknown trade, is relatively quiet. This all looks very much like a world that believes a real economic expansion is underway, and that a long–term sustainable global economic recovery has supplanted the shaky post-crisis (central bank–driven) recovery that was teetering back toward recession.

In other words, political chaos in the regime is not denting the stock market, because central banks buying stocks are eliminating volatility. Indeed, if you were to gauge the economy at this point by the US stock market, everything must be grand because the Trump Rally has been one of our most exuberant stock rallies.

According to Rich, all of that is a central-bank-created slight of hand intended to distract you from what is happening in politics and throughout the macro economy:

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Something Is Going On In Ocean City Right Now

I don't know what is going on at the moment in Ocean City but I just watched two police vehicles absolutely flying east bound down Rt. 50 heading into Ocean City at an extremely high rate of speed.

Nothing good ever happens at 3:00 in the morning and I just can't imagine just what kind of emergency would require police officers at this time of the morning to be traveling at such a high rate of speed.

Who knows, maybe we'll hear a rare species of turtle was crossing Rt. 50 and needed protection. Time will tell. Rise and shine people.

Launch Scheduled For 4:25AM TODAY At NASA's Wallops Flight Facility

Paul Ryan under fire for ‘actively thwarting’ Trump

'We need someone in there who will stop giving a blank check to the left's priorities'

Days after announcing his repeat challenge to House Speaker Paul Ryan in the upcoming Republican primary, Paul Nehlen told WND he is running again because he believes Ryan is failing President Trump as well as the voters of Ryan’s own district.

“Paul Ryan is actively thwarting the president,” Nehlen told WND. “Ryan could have had a vote on full repeal of Obamacare, but he chose to bring a cadaver and see if Trump could breathe life into it. We are funding everything that was funded under Obama with the 2015 omnibus spending bill and the latest omnibus spending bill.”

Like many conservatives, Nehlen expressed frustration that the “unified Republican government” Speaker Ryan bragged about in November hasn’t seemed to accomplish anything.

Indeed, Nehlen said the Republican Congress has often been counter-productive. And the populist challenger, who recently published the story of his previous underdog campaign in the new book “Wage The Battle,” placed the blame for the Republican Congress’s perceived failure squarely on the speaker of the House.

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Out of the Ashes of Western Civilization

Whether you believe that Western Civilization is dead, or only in a state of irreversible entropy, it should be evident that much of our culture no longer serves the interests of human beings. The major cause, which may lead to the extinction of our species, is found in our willingness to identify with abstractions which, by their very nature, reside beyond ourselves. Whether we find our identities in our race, gender, age, ideologies and other belief systems, nationality, economic interests, political parties, social/political causes, or other products of our thinking, we divide ourselves from one another and generate conflict. My book, Calculated Chaos: Institutional Threats to Peace and Human Survival,elaborated upon how we create institutions, through which we organize ourselves based upon our identities. Because the existence of institutions depends upon these divisions, their interests require the constant creation of conflicts that are so destructive to the lives of human beings.

Is it possible for us to learn to live in other ways? We are social creatures for whom organizing with others is both necessary and beneficial. But on what basis do we organize? Because of the “division of labor” principle, Robinson Crusoe and Friday could each live more productive lives by exchanging their surpluses with one another, than if each tried to be isolated and “self-sufficient.” Why is this so? Might there be some underlying factor that facilitates this.

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'My annoying cough turned out to be lung cancer'



I’ve always been a pretty healthy person. I barely ever got sick—maybe once a year or so. That’s why it was so noticeable when I had this cough that went on for months. I was 28 and I didn’t really know what I had—it wasn’t really a cold, and it never fully developed into anything. I used to suffer from asthma, but it wasn't a big deal, so I thought I just had sensitive lungs.

My symptoms started to become really noticeable in early 2015. It was little things here and there—I would bend down and to pick something up, and I’d get dizzy when I stood up. Or I’d have a cough after running up the stairs or to catch the bus. And then it got worse when I came down with a fever. I started monitoring my temperature and realized it would never fully go down. It never went below 99 degrees and would get as high as 104. I had a low-grade fever at all times, and on days it got really high, I had to start taking time off work.

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http://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/2017/06/26/my-annoying-cough-turned-out-to-be-lung-cancer.html

Is America Really Coming Apart, As Charles Murray Suggests?

A new Rasmussen poll reports that a majority of voters think so, and it certainly feels that way. Since Donald Trump’s election in November, the pace and intensity of deeply divisive rhetoric has accelerated. Antifa and the Alt-Right are literally fighting in the streets. Combative talking heads on cable news, vicious social media exchanges, riots at universities, a bitter special election in Georgia, and even the shooting of a congressman have both sides rethinking the entire political process and talking about abandoning the “rule of law.”

It is an uneasy time, a time for hard questions. Can politics really provide a solution to our problems, or is it the cause? Should we still abide by democratic processes when a significant portion of the country is enraged by the outcome? What if voting and elections simply weren’t anymore? These are the questions we need to ask and answer honestly.

Progressives, including Hillary Clinton, now openly label themselves the “resistance” and call for Trump to be removed from office. Anti-Brexit forces in the UK call for Theresa May simply to repudiate the referendum. Democratic elections, a cornerstone of neoliberalism, are not so sacrosanct when the wrong guy wins. Progressives’ sense of inevitability has been deeply shaken by Trump and the rise of nationalist movements in Europe. Has it been shaken enough to consider real alternatives to social democracy?

Conservatives too have radically changed their talking points. Bill Kristol tweets that he prefers a Deep State silent coup to living under the Trump state. David Frum calls Trump a liar and an autocrat. George Will claims the president has a “disability.”

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