The Apocalyptic Vision Of The Road

What is the "means of production" and what significance does it have to society? How is it created, expanded, or merely sustained? What is the relationship between the prevailing moral order of a society and its accumulation of capital?

These are questions that economists and political philosophers have considered throughout the history of economic thought. If you have ever enquired into the differences between capitalism and socialism you will have heard of the means of production, and you will be aware that this is very important to the organization of society. You might have heard of this, but you might not have spent much thought on the relationship between capital and moral order. Indeed, why should ordinary people care about such things? Isn't the means of production just something that one reads about between bong hits in the dorm rooms at university? Or is it perhaps something that is the domain of accountants and corporate managers, concerned with the proper techniques of double-entry bookkeeping? What is its great significance?

For those who are not sure, or don't care, The Road by Cormac McCarthy gives us a chilling glimpse of a society without capital or moral order – a world without a "means of production." It is a terrifying vision, and a wake-up call to those who regard questions of capital accumulation as being merely the dry and technical subject matter of economists. The novel is set in a postapocalyptic world devastated by a catastrophe of some kind that has destroyed the natural environment. It tells the story of a man and his young son trying to survive the dangers of the new world and retain their sense of goodness in the face of its horrors.

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Gazillions

Gazillions. That’s the number of times the federal government has spied on Americans since 9/11 through the use of drones, legal search warrants, illegal search warrants, federal agent-written search warrants and just plain government spying. This is according to Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who, when he asked the government to tell him what it was doing to violate our privacy, was given a classified briefing. The senator – one of just a few in the U.S. Senate who believes that the Constitution means what it says – was required by federal law to agree not to reveal what spies and bureaucrats told him during the briefing.

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Wawa Pays $12,500 To Kicked-Out Customer With Service Dog

Many people in Pennsylvania and New Jersey speak highly of the Wawa chain of convenience stores. Which is why it was a bit of surprise to folks in the area when a man was kicked out of a store earlier this summer because he brought his service dog into the building. Now the chain has not only agreed to fork over a bit of cash to the customer, but to also make sure its employees don't repeat the mistake.

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The Sunstein Farewell Lecture

It hasn't gone viral, but a new You Tube video (watch below) is how the administration's outgoing regulations chief sums up his tenure. Cass Sunstein has been running the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. In a kind of farewell lecture, Sunstein gives a brief history of regulatory activity going back to the Clinton administration. He uses a white board and cartoon illustrations to make his points. Sunstein says the Obama administration has made fewer rules than Clinton or George W. Bush. But he says the economic benefits of the rules, at $90 billion, dwarfs previous administrations. Sunstein heads back to Harvard Law School.

IRS Screws Up

The Internal Revenue Service has been rubber-stamping taxpayer ID applications instead of screening for fraud. A new study by the tax inspector general says the practice risks billions in improper payments and also has national security implications. The IDs are available to non-citizens who must file tax returns but can't get a Social Security Number. The IG, J. George Russell, says IRS employees are encouraged to process as many applications as possible. His report says IRS stopped using proven anti fraud procedures.

Bill Clinton Blasts Romney's "Disappointing" New Welfare Claim

Mitt Romney spent Tuesday on a media blitz claiming that President Obama is out to “gut welfare reform.” An ad released by the Romney campaign first pointed to President Clinton as having successfully reformed welfare, before excoriating Obama. However, in a statement, Clinton called Romney’s charge against Obama “disappointing” and “not true”:

Governor Romney released an ad today alleging that the Obama administration had weakened the work requirements of the 1996 Welfare Reform Act. That is not true. [...]

The recently announced waiver policy was originally requested by the Republican governors of Utah and Nevada to achieve more flexibility in designing programs more likely to work in this challenging environment. The Administration has taken important steps to ensure that the work requirement is retained and that waivers will be granted only if a state can demonstrate that more people will be moved into work under its new approach. The welfare time limits, another important feature of the 1996 act, will not be waived.

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Getting Screwed On Taxes

When corporations don't pay their fair share in taxes, the rest of us get screwed. As reported by the Huffington Post, America's ten most profitable corporations paid an average income tax rate of just 9% last year. The top two corporations not paying their fair share in taxes are oil companies – with ExxonMobil – the most profitable corporation in the history of the world paying a mere 2% income tax rate – and Chevron paying 4%. Those numbers clock in well below the 35% income tax rate corporations should be paying in America, but almost never do. Over the last few decades, corporate taxes as a share of government revenue have plummeted, forcing working people to pay more and more taxes to cover the gap. Plain and simple, giving tax breaks to corporations that pollute our skies, offshore our jobs, and deny us healthcare is not just crazy – it's immoral.

Good Jobs Are Hard To Find

A new report by the Center for Economic and Policy Research finds that our economy has lost one-third of its ability to create what are defined as "good jobs." A good job is one that pays at least 37,000 dollars a year and offers health insurance and a retirement plan. And the data shows that since 1979, Americans workers of all education levels have lost these good jobs. That includes workers with less than a high school degree and workers with more than a college degree. Why is this happening? Well, the report concludes: "The real culprit is the systematic decline in the bargaining power of workers — reflected in a drop in... the minimum wage, a collapse in the unionization rate in the private-sector, the deregulation of previously well-paying industries, the privatization of state and local government jobs, a series of business-biased trade deals, a dysfunctional immigration system, poor enforcement of already weak labor standards, and high unemployment." In other words, Reaganomics is to blame.

The Cost To Stay Out Of Jail

Eight billion dollars is a lot of money, but a small price to pay to stay out of jail. As the New York Times reports today, corporations are on track to pay as much as 8 billion dollars in fraud settlements this year to the U.S. government. That includes military contractors, banks, and pharmaceutical companies who systematically defrauded American taxpayers. The 8 billion they owe is double the amount paid out in settlements last year – and an all-time record high. But the important story is, despite the multiple acts of blatant fraud by corporate America resulting in record settlements – almost never does an executive go to prison. Pharmaceutical companies like GlaxoSmithKline and Merck and defense contractors like ATK Launch Systems admitted to stealing tens of millions of dollars from taxpayers, yet not one CEO is facing criminal charges. Of course, if you or I walked into a 7-11 and stole a two-dollar Slurpee, we're going to jail. But in America's two-tiered justice system – the corporate elite are untouchable.

With Rates Low, Banks Increase Mortgage Profit

Interest rates on mortgages and refinancing are at record lows, giving borrowers plenty to celebrate. But the bigger winners are the banks making the loans.

Banks are making unusually large gains on mortgages because they are taking profits far higher than the historical norm, analysts say. That 3.55 percent rate for a 30-year mortgage could be closer to 3.05 percent if banks were satisfied with the profit margins of just a few years ago. The lower rate would save a borrower about $30,000 in interest payments over the life of a $300,000 mortgage.

"The banks may say, 'We are offering you record low interest rates, so you should be as happy as a clam,' " said Guy D. Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, a home loan publication. "But borrowers could be getting them cheaper."

Mortgage bankers acknowledge that they are realizing big gains right now from home loans. But they say they cannot afford to cut rates even more because of the higher expenses resulting from stiffer regulations.

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To Stent Or Not To Stent, That Is In Question

New accusations that one of the nation's largest hospital chains performed more than a thousand unnecessary heart procedures grabbed headlines this week, but the practice is far from unique in U.S. health care.

A 2011 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that only half of 144,000 nonemergency heart catheterizations — typically the use of tiny balloons and stents to clear blocked arteries — were appropriate; 38 percent were "uncertain" and 12 percent were "inappropriate."

"It's presented in the media as if it's an aberrancy, when actually it's the rule," said Dr. David Brown, an interventional cardiologist and professor of medicine at SUNY-Stony Brook School of Medicine of the unnecessary heart procedures. "The medical system is addicted to the revenues that it generates."

In 2011, Medicare alone spent nearly $1 billion on the procedures. While they boost revenues for doctors and hospitals, unnecessary procedures consume taxpayer money, raise insurance premiums and put patients at risk. Studies show that about 3 percent of patients experience serious complications.

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Spain Is Reaching The Boiling Point

Activists Steal in Bulk from Supermarket and Bring to Food Kitchen

While all a person in the financial markets needs to do in order to understand the desperate economic situation in Spain is look at the country’s spiking bond yields, the social situation on the ground appears to be at some sort of dangerous inflection point. I found a story from Murcia Today to be very telling of what is happening on the ground in Spain and how this could easily get out of control. This reminds me of what was probably going on in the streets of North Africa prior to the uprisings there early last year. When people have been robbed by their politicians and oligarch bankster masters and they cannot eat, they will find a way to eat. Two words: French Revolution. The elites never learn.

I was unable to copy and paste from Murcia Today but these quotes are from a separate news source:

Unemployed fieldworkers and other members of the union went to two supermarkets, one in Ecija (Sevilla) and one in Arcos de la Frontera (Cadiz) and loaded up trolleys with basic necessities. They said that the people were being expropriated and they planned to “expropriate the expropriators”.

The foodstuffs, including milk, sugar, chickpeas, pasta and rice, have been given to charities to distribute, who say they are unable to cope with all the requests for help they receive. Unemployment in the Sierra de Cadiz is now 40%.

Murcia Today takes very different slant and refers to the union members as “militants” and the union itself as a “syndicate.” Of course these words could easily be lost in translation; I haven’t read the Spanish version. The Murcia Today article is here and I suggest reading it.

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WCSO Press Release 8-11-12

Incident: Threat of Arson / Resisting Arrest
Date of Incident: 9 Aug 2012
Location: 300 block of Chestnut Way, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Deonte K. Smiley, 18, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 9 August 2012 at 1:00 AM, a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office responded to a reported domestic disturbance in the 300 block of Chestnut Way in Salisbury. Upon arrival, the deputy learned that the 18 year old son, Deonte Smiley was being verbally abusive and destroying property inside the residence.

Smiley began yelling in front of the deputy that Smiley was going to blow up the house and kill everyone in it. The deputy decided to place Smiley under arrest but he
refused to submit to the handcuffs, instead Smiley tried to pull away from the deputy. The deputy was forced to physically restrain Smiley during which the deputy and Smiley both fell onto a couch. The deputy managed to successfully place Smiley in restraints and transported him to the Central Booking Unit.

Smiley was processed and brought in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner detained Smiley in the Detention enter in lieu of $25,000.00 bond.
.
Charges: Threat of Arson
Resisting Arrest

Elementary, Dear Obama

Ok, so none of us creates or produces anything ex nihilo. What if anything follows from this? Our teeth weren't made by us, nor our hair or nose or eyes. Yet we often benefit because of these. Our beautiful eyes may impress someone and may even land us a movie contract. We may be very tall and do well at basketball in consequence. A few of us may have talents others would kill for!

Bottom line is that having advantages over other folks entitles no one to step in and become equalizers, even if they are the president of the United States of America. To think otherwise is a non sequitur. Doesn't follow and rests not on logic nor reason but on the myth of the imperative of egalitarianism. Even before Mr Obama announced that we do not deserve our advantages Democratic candidate Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts promoted the mistake that not having made all of our advantages entitles others to butt in and take from us what we didn't earn. Warren was dead wrong just as Obama is.

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Romney Completes GOP Ticket With Rep. Ryan, Projects 'Steadiness'

Mitt Romney announced Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate Saturday, selecting the Republican Party's go-to man on budget issues in a decision that signals the campaign will make the nation's spiraling debt a centerpiece of its attacks on President Obama. 

Romney made the selection official during a campaign stop Saturday morning in Norfolk, Va., before launching a four-day bus tour.   

The Republican presidential candidate called his new running mate a man of "steadiness" and "integrity." Speaking Saturday morning, Romney praised Ryan as an "intellectual leader" of the party, one who understands the toll the debt is taking on the country but is optimistic about the future.

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AARP Study Shows Half Of Boomers Doubt They'll Retire

Among 50- to 64-year-olds surveyed by the AARP, the majority scored a 70 percent on the group's Anxiety Index, landing far ahead of the 18- to 49-year-old sect, which scored 59 percent. Seniors over 65 were the most relaxed of the bunch at 46 percent.

"The results belie a common stereotype of boomers as 'comfortable and living high on the hog compared to everyone else'," said Greg Strimple of GS Strategy Group, which conducted the survey with AARP and Hart Research Associates. "You see these numbers, and they're anything but."

What's keeping them up at night?

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QUOTES OF THE DAY 8-11-12

You can’t get good chinese takeout in China and cuban cigars are rationed in Cuba. That’s all you need to know about communism. P.J. O’Rourke

People only accept change when they are faced with necessity, and only recognize necessity when a crisis is upon them. Jean Monnet

… there are only two ways of coordinating the economic activities of millions. One is central direction involving the use of coercion – the technique of the army and of the modern totalitarian state. The other is voluntary cooperation of individuals – the technique of the marketplace. Milton Friedman

You will never understand bureaucracies until you understand that for bureaucrats procedure is everything and outcomes are nothing. Thomas Sowell

A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned – this is the sum of good government. Thomas Jefferson

Our country is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction, to wit: by consolidation of power first, and then corruption, its necessary consequence. Thomas Jefferson

The seductive notion that some Big Daddy in Washington can solve our problems for us– whether healing the sick, preventing poverty or “growing the economy”– is encouraged by politicians for obvious reasons, and the media echo the idea. Thomas Sowell

Politics is not the art of the possible. It consists in choosing between the disastrous and the unpalatable. John Kenneth Galbraith

Don't Forget The Iris Sale Today At The Mall

Disinformation: How It Works

There was a time, not too long ago (relatively speaking), that governments and the groups of elites that controlled them did not find it necessary to conscript themselves into wars of disinformation.

Propaganda was relatively straightforward. The lies were much simpler. The control of information flow was easily directed. Rules were enforced with the threat of property confiscation and execution for anyone who strayed from the rigid socio-political structure. Those who had theological, metaphysical or scientific information outside of the conventional and scripted collective world view were tortured and slaughtered. The elites kept the information to themselves, and removed its remnants from mainstream recognition, sometimes for centuries before it was rediscovered.

With the advent of anti-feudalism, and most importantly the success of the American Revolution, elitists were no longer able to dominate information with the edge of a blade or the barrel of a gun. The establishment of Republics, with their philosophy of open government and rule by the people, compelled Aristocratic minorities to plot more subtle ways of obstructing the truth and thus maintaining their hold over the world without exposing themselves to retribution from the masses. Thus, the complex art of disinformation was born.

The technique, the “magic” of the lie, was refined and perfected. The mechanics of the human mind and the human soul became an endless obsession for the establishment.

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MADE IN CHINA

Over the last decade, while the U.S. government went $16 trillion into debt, for a total of $54 trillion including private debt, China has been quietly investing in the rest of the world with it’s income. The U.S. is bankrupt, and China is attempting to own the world.

In the real world, free market principles bring wealth and prosperity, and Central bank debt slavery brings disaster. The Chinese understand that investment brings return, and that debt leads to death. The U.S. has taken “the road more traveled”, same as Europe, by creating Welfare and government employee states/countries that have wiped them out economically. We simply have no more money to invest; but only more and more debt.

China, on the other hand, has made trillions limiting imports and maximizing export goods to the U.S. and Europe, where consumers buy their crap on credit. China has taken that money and bought up strategic resources all over the world, but particularly in resource-rich Africa and South America. They have formed alliances with many oil producers, and have signed currency agreements with Russia, Japan, Brazil and many other countries to stop using the dollar as reserve currency. When the U.S. dollar is no longer reserve currency, we’re pretty well finished as the entire world will dump dollar-based assets, and we’ll have to exchange worthless dollars for other currencies just to trade for oil and goods.

We are truly living on borrowed time. China and Asia have taken much of our manufacturing and production (and the jobs). China is even buying up large chunks of the U.S., including entire towns in Michigan and large swaths of “rust belt” cities in the Midwest like Toledo, Ohio. China will own or control most of the resources on this planet before long, and the process will only accelerate after Europe and the U.S. collapse under the weight of tens of trillions in debt.

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Liberals, Progressives And Socialists

In Europe, especially in Germany, hoisting a swastika-emblazoned Nazi flag is a crime. For decades after World War II, people have hunted down and sought punishment for Nazi murderers, who were responsible for the deaths of more than 20 million people.

Here's my question: Why are the horrors of Nazism so well-known and widely condemned but not those of socialism and communism? What goes untaught – and possibly is covered up – is that socialist and communist ideas have produced the greatest evil in mankind's history. You say, "Williams, what in the world are you talking about? Socialists, communists and their fellow travelers, such as the Wall Street occupiers supported by our president, care about the little guy in his struggle for a fair shake! They're trying to promote social justice." Let's look at some of the history of socialism and communism.

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White Marlin Fishing Tournament In Russia

HISTORICAL COMMENTS BY GEORGE CHEVALLIER 8-11-12

The Radio

To most people today, the radio is just something that is on while we are riding in our cars. The preferred method of entertainment today is the television. But this was not the case when I was growing up. In a previous article I told about the Sunday ride. The ride had to conclude by 3:30 because that is when all the “good” programs started. Programs such as “The Shadow”, Philo Vance and others that captured our undivided attention began at 3:30. I relived those wonderful moments during my last years of traveling back and forth to work in Nanticoke. From my driveway to the parking lot at Nanticoke Seafood was exactly 30 minutes. I found a source for cassette tapes of old radio programs and loaded up on the wondrous stories I had forgotten since childhood. Nowadays, I don’t go anywhere that takes the 30 minutes I would need to listen to a whole tape.

My grandfather had a really large console Philco in his basement. It was always cool there, even on the hottest days of summer. We would go down there and listen to whatever was on. Just the idea of the radio was a marvel to behold for two young boys in the early 1950’s. There were very few televisions so we didn’t know we were missing anything. We finally got a television in 1959 and were probably the last family in Salisbury to get one. Mom and Pop always thought it would interfere with our school work.

My grandfather built an addition on our house in 1950. It had a den downstairs and my bedroom was on the second floor. As it was being built, I remember telling everyone that Grandpop was building me a new bedroom and that he had to put the den under it to hold it up. The first Christmas after it was completed, Grandpop gave me a General Electric radio. It had a “sleep timer” feature that I just loved. I distinctly remember that it cost $50 at the time. It was probably the biggest entertainment appliance in our house.

When I went away to high school, they had very strict rules. One of them was that no radios were allowed. I had this little gizmo that looked like a rocket ship with the antenna being the station changer. It had a wire from it that ended in two “alligator clips”. My bed in the dorm was right next to a radiator and I attached the clips to that. Then I would insert the earplugs that came with it and listen to the radio. My favorite was on Saturday night when I could get The Grand ‘Ol Opry. I don’t know if he was on the Opry or if it was another show, but my favorite was George Gobel. He had two sayings that I have never forgotten and smile every time I think of them. The first was. “Nobody likes a fat man, but if he has money, they can tolerate him.” The second was “Did you ever wake up and think the rest of the world was a tuxedo and you were a pair of brown shoes?’

Nowadays, there are FM stations that carry only certain programs. You can get just about anything you want – if you’re not looking for “The Shadow”.

CITY COUNCIL AGENDA AUGUST 13, 2012 6:00 p.m.

Government Office Building Room 301
Times shown for agenda items are estimates only.
6:00 p.m. CALL TO ORDER
6:01 p.m. WELCOME/ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:06 p.m. INVOCATION/MEDITATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
6:08 p.m. ADOPTION OF LEGISLATIVE AGENDA
6:13 p.m. CONSENT AGENDA – City Clerk Kim Nichols 1
 Resolution No. 2190 - authorizing the approval of a memorandum of
understanding with the Circuit Court for Wicomico County to provide
juror parking
6:15 p.m. AWARD OF BIDS – Assistant Internal Services Director-Procurement 2
Catrice Parsons
 Change Order #4 for Contract ARRA 22-08 Naylor Mill Road Regional
Lift Station
 Police Department surplus – one (1) handgun
 Police Department surplus – four (4) SPD vehicles
 Change Order #2 to Contract A-22-12 Citywide Blacktop Program
6:35 p.m. RESOLUTIONS – City Administrator John Pick
 Resolution No. 2187 - accepting a donation from the Target Corporation to 3a
assist in funding the annual National Night Out Against Crime event cohosted
by the Salisbury Police Department
 Resolution No. 2188 - accepting Maryland Department of the Environment 3b
grant funds for the construction of the Salisbury Wastewater Treatment Plant
drain lift station
 Resolution No. 2189 - accepting supplemental funds for the 2011 Emergency 3c
Solutions Grant from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community
Development
7:00 p.m. ORDINANCES – City Attorney Mark Tilghman
 Ordinance No. 2213 – 2nd reading – adjusting the capacity unit fee in 4a
accordance with Chapter 13.02 of the city code
 Ordinance No. 2214 – 2nd reading – approving an amendment of the city code 4b
to revise the scheduled dates for submission of a draft comprehensive connection
charge structure to Council and adoption of same
Ordinance No. 2215 – 1st reading - creating a bike route which will run from 4c
the intersection of Camden Avenue and West College Avenue to North Division
Street near the Government Office Building; providing dedicated bicycle-only
lanes and shared bicycle and motorized vehicle lanes as directed by MDMUTCD
Chapter 9, Traffic Control for Bicycle Facilities (MDMUTCD); installing lane
striping for dedicated lanes; installing shared lane markings for shared lanes;
installing bicycle markings on-pavement; and installing bike route signage along
the route per the MDMUTCD
7:45 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENTS
8:00 p.m. ADJOURNMENT

Somerset County Sheriff's Office Press Release 8-11-12

Vernon Tawes Sterling of Marion, arrested 8-2-12 on a warrant for second degree assault. Sterling was released on a $5,000 unsecured bond.

Craig Durand McGill of Salisbury, arrested 8-2-12 on a warrant for violation of probation. McGill was held on a $50,000 bond.

Shakiema Lashanda Jackson of Crisfield, arrested 8-3-12 on a body attachment warrant. Jackson was released on a $3,000 bond.

Tyrie Lamar Henderson of Princess Anne, arrested 8-3-12 on a body attachment warrant. Henderson was released after posting $500.00 bond.

Marciela Gomez of Westover, arrested 8-4-12 on a warrant for second degree assault. Gomez was held on a $5,000 bond.

Kimberly Renee Smith of Pocomoke City, arrested 8-4-12 for possession of suspected marijuana, possession of suspected cocaine, and possession of drug paraphernalia. The arrest was the result of a traffic stop conducted by deputies in the area of Ocean Highway and Short Lane. Smith was later released on personal recognizance.

Ronnie Johnson and Desiree Taylor both of Brooklyn New York, arrested 8-4-12 for speeding, possession of un-taxed cigarettes, and possession of deadly weapons. The arrest was the result of a traffic stop conducted by deputies on Ocean Highway near Revels neck Rd. Deputies recovered 50 cartons of un-stamped cigarettes, a large amount of us currency, 3 pair of brass knuckles, and a stun gun. Both subjects were later held on a $15,000 bond.

Tina Marie Absher of Milsboro Delaware, arrested 8-5-12 for driving on a suspended drivers license, and failure to drive right of center. Absher was released on signature pending court actions.

Margo shante Ward of Crisfield, arrested 8-6-12 for driving on a suspended drivers license, driving a uninsured vehicle, failure to drive right of center, and failure to display registration card. Ward was released on signature pending court actions.

Sara Margaret Lee of Baltimore, arrested 8-9-12 for a warrant regarding failing to appear in court. Lee was held on a $2,500 bond.

To Haiti, With Love: Benefitting Cont. Post-Earthquake Rebuilding Projects

Salisbury, MD – To Haiti, with Love: A 40 Year Journey into the Heart of a Nation will return to the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center on Thursday, August 16th. Tom and Bev Brumbley with Evangelistic World Outreach invite you to their 2nd annual semi-formal gala event.

The cost is $30/ticket. Ticket locations are at Bella Grace, O’Neals Antiques, and The Mustard Seed. Proceeds will benefit continued post-earthquake rebuilding projects. Please contact 410.749.8563 or delmasgent@yahoo.com for more details.

Deer Infestation Calls For A Radical Free-Market Solution

Looking over the American landscape, it’s hard to think of a more insidious threat to forests, farms and wildlife, not to mention human health and safety, than deer.

Yet when it comes to reducing this costly infestation, too many elected officials sit on their hands or deflect effective control measures. There were about 1.09 million deer-vehicle collisions from June 2010 to June 2011, State Farm Insurance reports, with average property damage of more than $3,000 an accident. Add to that a billion or so dollars for agricultural damage. Deer carry ticks that spread Lyme disease. And their voracious chomping has resulted in “ghost forests” -- particularly in the Northeast.

If a forest is healthy, it will support about 15 deer per square mile, and many scientists say that a degraded patch can’t be restored unless the population is about five per square mile. Compare that target with the actual deer densities: Some areas of the U.S. have 40 to 50 of them in a square mile, with much higher estimates in some Eastern suburbs. In New Jersey, one- third of the remaining species of native plants are endangered, largely because of deer. Many warblers, thrushes and dozens of other ground-nesting birds lose the protection of native plants, and some species of native pollinators -- butterflies, moths, beetles -- vanish.

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Mitt Romney Taps Paul Ryan As Vice Presidential Running Mate

NORFOLK, Va. — Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has picked Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan to be his running mate, according to a Republican with knowledge of the development. The newly minted GOP ticket will appear together Saturday in Norfolk, Va., at the start of a four-state bus tour to introduce the GOP ticket to the nation.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because this person was not authorized to disclose the decision.

In a statement issued Friday night, Romney's campaign would say only that the running mate would be revealed at 9 a.m. EDT at the Nauticus Museum. Berthed at the museum is the USS Wisconsin – which offered a hint about Romney's choice.

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Remember What I Said The Other Day About Manufacturing News?

Neighbors: Turn Bricks into affordable housing

The Daily Times went out and found a couple of people giving them the headline, "Neighbors: Turn Bricks into affordable housing". While people are complaining about a Skate Park and the expense it will cost the taxpayers, SINCE WHEN is it or should it be for local municipalities to not only pay for affordable housing but OWN it as well and be the slumlord?


The Daily Times continues to push very selective agendas especially for Mayor Jim Ireton. We keep hearing about the Council of no's. Do you really wonder why the Council says no to certain projects. Spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for units that will only bring in $300.00 a month in rent is just plain stupid. Thank God we have a Council majority who are liberals, (at that) yet fiscally responsible.


The Daily Times continues to manufacture news that is not news. The Bricks is a DEAD issue. As a candidate for Mayor I say, GOOD, it should be. We have far more problems and issues than to continue to only concentrate on issues this Mayor wants to use against certain Council Members as well as me as a Candidate.


So here it is Mayor Ireton. I say, scrub that project and as the next Mayor I'd dump that property so fast it isn't funny. SELL IT, GET RID OF IT. I'm more interested in repaving roads that desperately need it then I am in this project.


According to the Daily Times the Mayor stated in this article, "He said he doesn't want to do anything with The Bricks until he knows whether Homes for America will sue to recover the $108,000 in expenses it says it paid to other parties and incurred itself.


He then goes on to say, "In addition, Ireton may postpone any action until after next spring's elections in the hope of a more favorable council coming into power, he said."


Once again, LOOK at what the Mayor said. It is yet ANOTHER plug to get rid of Debbie Campbell and hurt her in the upcoming election. In other words, IF you vote for someone else there's a good chance we'll get this project through.


Folks, let this backfire on Jim Ireton. A vote for me and a vote for Debbie Campbell will assure these ridiculous projects come to an immediate end. NO MORE WWTP projects. NO MORE $14,000,000.00 Fire Departments. NO MORE Subsidized Housing units Downtown. NO MORE TIF's. NO MORE Developer reimbursements, NO MORE Bricks, Linnens of the week and the list goes on and on.


Salisbury is a business and for once it needs to be run like one. Salisbury is NOT about making friends in all the right places for the benefit of a few. We have roads to pave. Businesses to attract. Crime to be much lower. We have a LOT of old work that hasn't been touched in a decade or more.


Putting lipstick on a pig doesn't make Salisbury a pretty place to live and work. We need jobs! We need a Mayor who doesn't send out a Press Release stating HE revitalized Feldman's. We need a Mayor who will recognize Gillis/Gilkerson for taking on such an incredible eye sore. We need a Mayor that will thank ANY person/business that purchases property and keeps it on the tax roll instead of thanking SU or PRMC for buying properties that ultimately come OFF the tax roll.


In reality, Salisbury needs a new Mayor and Salisbury needs an honest newspaper.

David Cephas, Former MPD Officer, Pleads Guilty In Photo Radar Fraud Case

A 22-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department has pleaded guilty to falsifying logs that tracked photo radar fines in the District of Columbia.

Prosecutors say that between 2008 and 2009, David Cephas, a former officer with the agency, falsified deployment logs that certified deployment times for equipment used as a part of MPD's speed camera program.

Officers on photo-radar duty are paid overtime to monitor the equipment, which they must test fire hourly to make sure it’s calibrated properly.

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1.3M GE Dishwashers Recalled Over Fire Hazard

More than a million GE dishwashers are being recalled due to fire hazard.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday the voluntary recall includes about 1.3 million GE, GE Adora, GE Eterna, GE Profile and Hotpoint dishwashers. The machines' heating elements can fail and cause fires. GE has received seven reports of fires, three of which caused extensive property damage, according to the CPSC. No injuries have been reported.

The dishwashers were sold nationwide from March 2006 through August 2009 for $350 to $850. They came in black, white, bisque, stainless steel and CleanSteel colors and finishes.

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About Us Resources Send Tips Donate RSS CNSNews.TV On the Spot On the Scene The Schein OTJ Golden Hookah Levin Weighs In On How Politicians Can Actually 'Support Women'

Last night, radio host Mark Levin posed the question: “How does Obama support women in Colorado?”

Discussing President Obama’s campaign stop in Colorado to win over female support, Levin said that President Obama’s failed domestic policies also have a negative impact on women- not just men:

“[President] Obama’s in Colorado telling women in Colorado that he supports them. How does Obama support women in Colorado? With free contraceptives?

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White House Wants Lawsuit Dropped

The White House is asking a district court to dismiss a lawsuit by a homeless advocacy organization over the disclosure of information about unused federal buildings. The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty is suing the Office of Management and Budget to get the agency to release more documentation about surplus federal properties, including some that may not have been reported. The Washington Post reports OMB submitted a motion to the district court in Washington rejecting the lawsuit's claims, saying no documents have been improperly withheld and Acting OMB Director Jeff Zients is the improper defendant.

Doctors Remove Spider Hiding In Woman’s Ear Canal

A woman who went to China's Changsha Central Hospital complaining of itching in the left side of her head was told by doctors that the source of irritation was a spider that had been living inside her ear canal for five days.

Doctors reportedly used a saline solution to flush out the spider in order to avoid having the spider burrow deeper inside the canal or bite her.

The flushing technique was successful and the woman reportedly wept with gratitude after being told the spider was removed. Doctors say they believe the spider entered the woman's home while the home was undergoing renovations, and crawled into her ear while she was sleeping.

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Livestock Farmers Still Seeking Pause In Ethanol Production

Livestock farmers and ranchers seeing their feed costs rise because of the worst drought in a quarter-century are demanding that the Environmental Protection Agency waive production requirements for corn-based ethanol.

The Obama administration sees no need for a waiver, siding with corn growers — many of them in presidential election battleground states Iowa and Ohio — who continue to support the mandate.

"If not now, when?" Randy Spronk, a Minnesota pork farmer, said of the EPA's authority to defer the ethanol production requirement when it threatens to severely harm the economy of a state or region. "Everyone should feel the pain of rationing."

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Pa. Road Crew Paints Yellow Line Over Dead Raccoon

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (AP) - The "squirrelly" configuration of a western Pennsylvania road helped cause a state road crew to paint a double-yellow line over a dead raccoon.

Motorcyclist Sean McAfee snapped a photo of the mistake before it could be cleaned up and submitted it to the Tribune-Democrat of Johnstown

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Man Dead After Police Confrontation In Columbia

- A man wanted for holding his girlfriend hostage by gunpoint was shot and killed by police Thursday evening after a confrontation in Columbia, Md., according to a press release.

The announcement came from the Howard County Department of Police, Office of Public Affairs.

Police had a warrant for the man's arrest.

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Perseid Meteor Shower

How do you watch a meteor shower? Step one: Find yourself a clear, dark sky late in the evening. Two, pour a cool, summer beverage. Three, find a lawn chair, sit and drink aforementioned beverage. And finally, look up.

Not only do we get fireworks on the Fourth of July, we get nature’s own fireworks in mid August. Check out the Perseid (pronounced PURR-see-id) meteor shower on the night of August 11-12.

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ROUND‘DEUX’

The countdown to Dew Tour action is on as workers this week began building a vertical ramp, Mega 2.0 ramp, skateboard bowl and a BMX park, along with the rest of the venue that will contain the “Dew Tour Experience” booths, activities and concert stage. The Pantech Beach Championships action, scheduled for Aug. 16-19, will unfold on the beach, adjacent to the Boardwalk, just north of the pier in downtown Ocean City.

“What they’re doing is no easy task. A lot of work goes into putting it all together,” said Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan. “If you take a picture on the first day [of construction] and the last day, it’s quite an accomplishment erecting everything on the beach.”

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NUGENT: O’Reilly Spinning In The ‘No Spin Zone’

When it comes to guns, there is plenty of spin in Bill O’Reilly’s “No Spin Zone.” The zone has been infected with a bad case of yellow journalism.

Mr. O’Reilly is either woefully ignorant of the most basic of firearm laws, nomenclature, rules and requirements, or he has a clear anti-gun agenda and is a willing puppet for those who want to end the Second Amendment.

Mr. O’Reilly recently stated on his TV program, “The O'Reilly Factor,” that anyone in America can go out and buy a machine gun or bazooka without any reporting requirements at all.

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Oh Who Gives A @&%$

Michael Jordan
From: Barack Obama
To: Joe Albero
Date: Fri, Aug 10, 2012 5:08 pm

Joe --

When Michael Jordan wrote a check to my campaign for U.S. Senate in 2004, I wasn't sure whether I should cash it or frame it.

Now Michael Jordan is taking his support to the next level. If you chip in $3 or whatever you can today, you'll be automatically entered for a chance to meet both of us at an event later this month in New York City.

You're invited to bring a guest -- so if basketball isn't your game, I encourage you to bring someone in your life who might enjoy meeting Michael and me over dinner, and maybe even shooting some hoops with some of the other basketball stars, past and present.

Now, I don't know if I'll want to sprint up and down the court that night, but I'm always up to launch a few jump shots. If you join me, don't be surprised if I challenge you or your guest to play.

Tonight is the deadline to throw your name in -- and, today only, every entry counts for two. Make a donation, and you'll be automatically entered:

Thanks,

Barack

Dear Barack,

Will you be serving beer? If so, I'd like to know what kind before I even consider.

Could George Zimmerman Get the Case Against Him Thrown Out?

George Zimmerman will seek to have second-degree murder charges dismissed under Florida’s “stand your ground” law in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, his attorney said Thursday.

The hearing, which likely won’t take place for several months, will amount to a mini-trial involving much of the evidence collected by prosecutors as well as expert testimony from both sides.

“Most of the arguments, witnesses, experts and evidence that the defense would muster in a criminal trial will be presented in the ‘stand your ground’ hearing,” said the statement posted by Zimmerman attorney Mark O‘Mara on Zimmerman’s official defense website.

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York: When 1,099 Felons Vote In Race Won By 312 Ballots

In the eyes of the Obama administration, most Democratic lawmakers, and left-leaning editorial pages across the country, voter fraud is a problem that doesn't exist. Allegations of fraud, they say, are little more than pretexts conjured up by Republicans to justify voter ID laws designed to suppress Democratic turnout.

That argument becomes much harder to make after reading a discussion of the 2008 Minnesota Senate race in "Who's Counting?", a new book by conservative journalist John Fund and former Bush Justice Department official Hans von Spakovsky. Although the authors cover the whole range of voter fraud issues, their chapter on Minnesota is enough to convince any skeptic that there are times when voter fraud not only exists but can be critical to the outcome of a critical race.

In the '08 campaign, Republican Sen. Norm Coleman was running for re-election against Democrat Al Franken. It was impossibly close; on the morning after the election, after 2.9 million people had voted, Coleman led Franken by 725 votes.

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Philadelphia Man Arrested After Assaulting Trooper, Dover

Location: 2000 block of Chestnut Grove Road, Dover, DE

Date of Occurrence: Thursday August 9, 2012 at approximately 9:40 a.m.

Victims:

47 year old male victim
25 year old female trooper assigned to Troop 3 in Dover

Defendant, Charges, and Bond Information:

Hughie Cooper, 31, Philadelphia, PA (Photo Attached)
Assault 2nd on a Law Enforcement Officer (Felony)
Resisting Arrest (Felony)
Criminal Trespass 3rd (Misdemeanor)

Arraigned at JP2 and committed to James T. Vaughn Correctional Center on $10,500.00 cash bail.

Resume:
Dover, DE- The Delaware State Police have arrested a Philadelphia man after he assaulted a trooper in an attempt to flee from custody.

Troopers were called to the 2000 block of Chestnut Grove Road around 9:40 a.m. Thursday after a 47 year old victim reported a suspicious subject on his property. The victim told the suspect, who was later identified at Hughie Cooper, to leave his property and Cooper did. A description of Cooper was given to the 9-1-1 Emergency Communications Center and was broadcast to responding troopers.

As a female trooper was traveling on Kenton Road in the area of Chestnut Grove Road, she observed an individual that matched the description given by dispatchers. Once Cooper saw the patrol car, he immediately started running towards the area of Maple Dale Golf Course. The female trooper exited her vehicle and initiated a foot pursuit with Cooper, giving several commands for him to stop. The chase continued into a wooded area where the trooper observed the suspect lying on his back with his hands balled up underneath a shirt across his chest. As she gave numerous commands for him to show his hands, he failed to comply which resulted in her deploying her departmentally issued Taser, briefly subduing the suspect. A struggle ensued between the two and in the process, Cooper was able to take control of the Taser and turn it onto the trooper causing her to receive a slight electric charge but not incapacitating. The trooper was able to quickly break free from altercation and restrain Cooper, placing her handcuffs on him.

Cooper was then transported back to Troop 3 and arrested for the above listed charges. He was arraigned at JP2 and committed to JTVCC in Smyrna on $10,500.00 cash bail. Cooper was initially transported to Kent General Hospital where he was seen for an unspecified injury before being turned over to Department of Corrections.

The trooper was taken to Kent General Hospital where she was treated for an unspecified injury she sustained in the altercation with Cooper. She was later released.

MSP Press Release

MARYLAND STATE POLICE ALERT MOTORISTS OF CONTINUING EASTOUND INTERSTATE 70 ROAD CLOSURE

Hilarious Responses From Obama Supporters About Contraception

From revealingpolitics.com comes these outrageous responses from Obama supporters outside the joint President Obama-Sandra Fluke campaign event in Denver on Wednesday.

The interviewees were all dead-set on the government not having any place in the bedroom. But following that up with why then should the government pay for the contraception used in the bedroom, they seemed to falter

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Meet the Real Workers Obama Screwed Over

Chutzpah overload in full effect: President Obama’s sleazy super-PAC, run by his former White House spokesman Bill Burton, just released an ad accusing GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney of causing the cancer death of a steelworker’s wife.

It’s not just a slanderous and false attack. It’s a foolish attempt to camouflage the administration’s massive jobs death toll, politicized pension plundering and Big Labor bailout cronyism. And it will backfire big time because the thousands and thousands of true victims of Obama’s economic wreckage are speaking up and fighting back.

Let’s dispense with the “Romney = murderer” meme first. The warped Priorities USA ad features the claims of one Joe Soptic, a former employee at the Kansas City-based GST Steel plant. The plant went bankrupt years after Bain Capital acquired it. Soptic blames Romney for the loss of his job and health insurance — and for the subsequent death of his wife a “short time after” the plant’s closure.

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California School District Will Spend $1 Billion to Borrow $100 Million

It’s being called a loan not even a subprime lender would make.

A school district north of San Diego, Poway Unified, borrowed $105 million over 40 years by selling a bond so unusual that the State of Michigan outlawed it years ago. Taxpayers in the area will end up with a nearly $1 billion bill at the end of this deal.

The Poway school district is not the only one — three other California school districts in San Diego are set to gouge taxpayers in similar fashion. The San Diego Unified School district borrowed $164 million up front, but will owe a whopping $1.3 billion at the end of its long-term bond. Oceanside Unified sold a $30 million bond, but will owe nearly ten times as much decades later, $280 million total. And Escondido Union School District likewise borrowed $27 million and will owe $247 million total. (Will Carless and Joel Thurtell at the
Voice of San Diego, a local blogger, has been tracking these bond developments.)

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The Phony Battle Over The Self-Made Man

The so-called self-made man has become a political lightning rod. This has been made starkly clear in recent weeks by the reactions to President Obama’s much dissected “you didn’t build that” line. What Obama said was: “If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help … Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business — you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.” Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts candidate for U.S. Senate, first voiced this theme in a video that went viral, arguing that the success of any entrepreneur is made possible by the roads, schools and police that generations of ordinary citizens have paid for. (“There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own,” was her memorable line.)

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Blue to Red: Financial Sector Practically ‘Showering’ Republicans With Campaign Money

Back in 2008, financial services companies, Goldman Sachs in particular, loved the Democrat Party and then-Senator Barack Obama.

“[E]mployees of New York-based Goldman gave three-fourths of their campaign donations to Democratic candidates and committees, including presidential nominee Barack Obama,” Bloomberg reports.

But then something happened. He got elected.

After the 2008 presidential election, members of the financial community were no longer valued donors but were instead “fat cats” who don’t pay their “fair share” or “play by the rules.” And then the White House condoned and coddled that whole “Let’s Destroy Capitalism” Occupy Wall Street thing.

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Is The Military Racist?

There is no place for intolerance in our armed forces. And yet Milwaukee shooter and army veteran Wade Page has done his damage

In the wake of a tragic shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin, my heart is particularly torn. As a Hindu, I share a bond with the Sikh faith rooted in Dharma; more tangibly, their immigrant community in American suburbia closely resembled my own childhood. I can visualize the temple coming under siege, and parents and children alike — not unlike my own uncles and aunties — permanently scarred for life in their worship.

Yet at the same time, I’m a veteran, just like Wade Page. In most news articles, Page’s military service is somewhat tangential to his biography, mainly because he served so long ago, from 1992–98. He never had to see combat, and his record was tainted with alcohol abuse and AWOL status. It’s easy to marginalize him as just an anomaly of the Armed Forces. But to those who continue to read headlines about the lack of cultural civility in our combat arms — whether stories on “Kill Teams” in Afghanistan, the Haditha shootings or Abu Graib in Iraq, or even the suicide of an Asian service member after being racially targeted in his own unit — the 98% of Americans who have no relation to the military service start to see this as common place about the way our service members regard diversity.

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Obama: Let's Repeat Auto Industry Success

President Obama, while villifying Mitt Romney for opposing the auto industry bailout, bragged about the success of his decision to provide government assistance and said he now wants to see every manufacturing industry come roaring back.

“I said, I believe in American workers, I believe in this American industry, and now the American auto industry has come roaring back,” he said. “Now I want to do the same thing with manufacturing jobs, not just in the auto industry, but in every industry.

“I don’t want those jobs taking root in places like China, I want those jobs taking root in places like Pueblo,” Obama told a crowd gathered for a campaign rally at the Palace of Agriculture at the Colorado State Fairgrounds here.

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Campus Scandals and College Admissions: What Applicants Should Know

Every year over the course of the summer, high school seniors cobble together a list of schools they plan to apply to. They consider academics and social life, location and school size, reputation and school culture, all in an attempt to find that elusive perfect fit. But recent scandals in a pair of the most storied public universities in the country — the University of Virginia (UVA) and Penn State — draw attention to another important consideration for future college students: What are the values and priorities of the administration and the trustees?

At UVA, controversy erupted after a popular president, Teresa Sullivan, was ousted by the board of trustees for not moving the school quickly enough to a hybrid model of education, one in which a greater proportion of the university’s offerings were made online. Sullivan wanted to make the changes from the bottom up, with the cooperation of students and faculty. The board wanted a quick, top-down change, in the style of a Fortune 500 corporation. In the end, Sullivan was rehired, and the board’s vision was effectively rebuffed. Indeed, donations plummeted after Sullivan’s ouster then shot up after she was rehired, which would seem to indicate supporters of the university prefer Sullivan’s approach to the board’s.

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Md. Reports Nearly 7 Percent Visitor Increase

More people are visiting Maryland.

State tourism officials reported a nearly 7 percent increase Thursday in the number of domestic travelers visiting the state in 2011.

The 34.4 million visitors included more leisure and business travelers on both day trips and overnight stays.

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Cartoon Of The Week

Md., Del. Make List Of Worst Power Plant Polluters

Maryland and Delaware are among the nation's top 20 power plant polluters, according to new rankings by the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Maryland ranked 19th in the rankings released Thursday, an improvement from fifth place the year before. Delaware rose one spot from 21st the year before to make it onto the top 20 list.

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Is Your Elderly Parent Moving In? It Might Cost You

Decisions about providing care for an aging parent are by no means easy — or cheap. Make it easier by asking some key questions and discussing them with your parents ahead of time.

Many people my age struggle with the best way to care for their aging parents — and my husband and I are no exception. My friends, colleagues and I all agonize as we debate whether our parent(s) should move in with us or enter an assisted-living facility or nursing home. These are complex decisions that have emotional, physical and financial costs — and no easy answers.

My mother is healthy now, but one fact is clear: if she moves into our three-story home someday, we’ll need to make some changes to our house. And while we would welcome her company, making our home easy for her to get around in could be very expensive.

Recently, my husband and I decided to speak candidly with my mom about her own plans for the future. We were motivated to broach the issue after talking to my friend Victoria, who went through a similar experience with her mother. Victoria’s elderly mom moved in with her after her father’s death, but in order to care for her — Victoria’s mom was wheelchair bound and needed assistance with some daily activities — Victoria had to remodel her home.

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Google Hit With $22.5M Fine For Privacy Misstep

Google will pay a record $22.5 million fine to the FTC for essentially bypassing the privacy settings of Apple's Safari browser while telling users it wasn't tracking the websites they visited.

The agreement was announced Thursday after the FTC found Google had violated a 2011 federal settlement over its privacy practices.

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Sept. 15 Deadline For 2012 Fishing Photo Contest Approaching

Have you taken a great photo of a young angler in action? If so, there’s still time to enter the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife’s 2012 Delaware Fishing Photo Contest before the Sept. 15 entry deadline. The winning photo will be featured on the cover or inside of the 2013 Delaware Fishing Guide to be published next spring.

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Homeland Security Asks Public For Help To Rescue Child Porn Victims

In an unusual move, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are distributing photos and asking for the public’s help in identifying a woman the agency says was involved in child pornography with at least two young girls.

While executing a search warrant in Los Angeles, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations unit discovered videos that agents said showed a white woman having “sexual contact” and an unidentified man having oral sex with two children — one investigators said was likely 3 to 5 years of age, and the other between 5 and 7 years when one of the videos was made in 2010.

HSI released a handful of photos of the woman, including one of a large mole on the back of the woman’s left thigh. The investigators said she is between 25 and 35, and has dark brown hair and blue eyes.

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Review Of Md. Procurement Practices Called ‘Better Late Than Never’

Gov. Martin O’Malley has said that he wants to review the state’s procurement practices to find a better, more efficient system, and the chair of House of Delegates government operations subcommittee, Del. Dan Morhaim, said that while the suggestion comes late in the governor’s term, it’s “better late than never.”

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Maryland Fourth Most Democratic State In Nation, Gallup Says

Confirming the edge Democrats enjoy and Republicans hate, Maryland is the fourth most Democratic state in the nation, based on hundreds of polls taken this year by the Gallup organization. Maryland Democrats have a 20 point advantage.

Continue Reading...

Couple Duped Into Not Actually Booking Tom Petty For Their Wedding Ends Up With Tom Petty Anyway

Talk about a heartbreaker: Can you imagine thinking you've managed to book your favorite musician to play at your wedding, only to find out you've been duped to the tune of $165,000?

An Amazon exec was dazzled by the tales of a booking firm that said it could not only get Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers to play at his July nuptials, but also boasted a roster of artists such as Run-DMC and Ludacris. Had to be legit, right? Wrong.

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Today's Fill In The Blank 8-10-12

A skate park should be paid for by ____.

LEGO Piece Crammed Up Nose For 3 Years Causes Child’s Chronic Health Problems

The six-year-old Utah boy was sick for no clear reason. Just bad luck. For years, he had terrible sinus problems, and doctors assumed that it was bacterial, prescribing antibiotic after antibiotic that never solved the problem. Then one physician looked outside of the box (outside of the nostril?) a bit and noticed that there was some kind of foreign object up the child's nose. Did he remember putting anything up there? No, of course not. A specialist removed the obstruction, which turned out to be a "ball of fungus" surrounding a tiny, flexible LEGO tire. The child's health problems abruptly disappeared.

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No, Trojan Isn’t Giving Away Hot Dogs On The Streets Of NYC: Those Are Vibrators

Lest you think that bright purple cart and the objects being handed out willy nilly on the streets of New York have anything to do with hot dogs, we're here to warn you — Trojan is not the food business, it's in the business of getting you to buy its vibrators. That's why the company will be handing out 10,000 of its Trojan Vibrations vibrators on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Again, not hot dogs. Sex toys. Get it right.

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Scientists Say Ingredient Common In Microwave Popcorn Could Be Linked To Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer's has proved a mysterious disease for researchers who have been trying to pinpoint what can cause it, and how it can be deterred. Researchers now think they've got another insight into what could cause Alzheimer's after studying an ingredient called diacetyl, a flavoring often used to make microwave popcorn smell and test buttery.

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Today's Advertiser Of The Day 8-10-12

Comcast Employees Caught Taking Payments From 5,975 Customers To Permanently Lower Bills

Most of us wince at our cable bills each month, but what would you do if someone from the cable company approached you and said they could permanently lower your bill -- if you gave them a one-time payment of $150?

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Brain Teaser

Trader Lands Starbucks And Tutti Frutti

Matthew Trader of Rinnier Development has recently closed on 10-year deals for both Starbucks Coffee and Tutti Frutti Frozen yogurt at Seagull Square. Trader has worked diligently the past few months to bring both franchises to the south salisbury market and he looks forward to their opening. Both franchises are set to open at Seagull Square in the fall of 2012.

Big Brother

Two lawmakers want to bring the cloud into a 26-year-old privacy law. Congressmen Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.) want the Electronic Communications Privacy Act to address current technology trends. The Electronic Communications Privacy Act Modernization Act of 2012 would require the government to obtain a search warrant demonstrating probable cause anytime it seeks the contents of electronic communications. The bill also would provide a uniform standard and set notice rules for the government accessing emails or other electronic communications. Many of the major telecommunications and technology companies support this approach.

Today's Survey Question 8-10-12

Have you been following the Olympics closely?

A Salisbury News Exclusive

A few years ago I took the time to take photos of the old Theater on Main Street coming down. Today I weathered the rain to capture the final back wall coming down on the south side of the old Feldman's building.

I wanted to capture this so people could see just how nice it will eventually look once the wall was down and you could see the River. You'll only see these images on Salisbury News as no one else seems interested enough in the history of Salisbury.

I hope you enjoy the images.

No More Licenses To Nuclear Plants

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says it will stop issuing licenses for nuclear plants. The Wall Street Journal reports, that's because of a recent federal appeals court decision. The case involves nuclear waste. The NRC can issue permits when it has confidence there will eventually be places to store the waste. But the Obama administration, working through Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), killed the program to build a national waste repository in Nevada. The court struck down the NRC's finding that it could still have reasonable assurance of a future storage site. The ruling casts new doubt on whether the U.S. will ever expand its nuclear generating capacity.

Md. Senate Panel Advances Pit Bull Bill

A Senate panel has passed a bill to address a Maryland court ruling that determined pit bulls are "inherently dangerous."

The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee passed the bill on Thursday, the first day of a special session in Annapolis.

The bill now goes to the full Senate for consideration

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The Social Security Administration Is Offering Early Retirements To 9,000 Employees

That's nearly 14 percent of its workforce. Federal Times reports anyone accepting the offer has until Sept. 30 to retire. It isn't a buyout offer. To qualify, an employee must be at least 50 years old and have 20 years of service. Civil Service Retirement System employees must have served at least two years in a CSRS position before being eligible. The agency didn't say how many employees it expects to take up the offer, or how many it wants to.

Close Call

The Federal Aviation Administration has banned a procedure that nearly caused a mid-air collision over Northern Virginia last week. It bars all airports from letting planes land and take off in opposite directions. The procedure has been necessary when changing weather requires a reversal in approach patterns. The ban is temporary until FAA officials can work out a standard, national procedure for all airports to use. In the Reagan National Airport incident, not all of the controllers and pilots involved knew what was going on.

Caption This Photo 8-10-12

City Leaders Continue To Question Littering And Smoking As Increasing Image Problems

The city’s beach and Boardwalk smoking question — often discussed, but never acted on by city officials — could be gaining new momentum as members of the City Council have expressed concern over littering and an activist group has begun to press not only the health concerns involved, but also the image problem they believe the town faces from smoking and cigarette butt disposal.

The topic of banning, or at least curtailing, smoking on the city’s beaches and Boardwalk was last raised in June, when Terry Steimer of the Ocean City Surfrider Foundation asked the council for its continued support of the foundation’s cigarette butt receptacle program. The initiative has seen 200 disposal containers placed on the beach, in order to combat the annual influx of butts to the city’s otherwise pristine sand.

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Don't Forget The Farmers Market This Weekend 8-10-12

MILLER: Second Amendment At Risk In Second Term

Democrats just couldn’t hold it together. With less than 100 days to go before the election, the left let slip its vision of a second term for President Obama that will be the end for the Second Amendment.

They’re riding on an emotional wave created by James Holmes, the suspected Aurora, Colo., movie-theater shooter who was charged with 24 counts of murder on Monday. As the courtroom proceedings in that case unfolded, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, New Jersey Democrat, and Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, New York Democrat, took to New York's city hall to introduce legislation making it much harder for law-abiding citizens nationwide to purchase ammunition.

The liberal duo would restrict ammunition sales to licensed dealers and require buyers to show a photo ID at the time of purchase, effectively banning people from doing their shopping online. Also, the dealer would have to maintain detailed records for each ammunition sale and report anyone purchasing over 1,000 rounds.

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Thank God Its Friday 8-10-12

What will you be doing this weekend?

Cuts

Maybe it's because of his avowed desire for transparency. Or maybe it's the bipartisan quality of the bill. But President Obama has signed a law requiring the administration to provide Congress with a list of sequester budget cuts. Should sequestration occur in January, the executive branch would need to make an immediate $110 billion reduction in 2013 spending. The new law imposes a Sept. 6 deadline for the report. Sequestration became law last year when a bipartisan Congressional committee couldn't agree on a deficit- reduction plan.

Unions hit Democratic Convention Where It Hurts: In The Wallet

The Democrats are hitting up unions — their go-to cash cows — for last-minute donations to help pay for next month’s convention in Charlotte.

The response from some big unions? Tough

Union leaders insisted from the start that they wouldn’t help fill the piggy bank for this year’s Democratic National Convention after the party picked a labor-hostile location and at the same time made fundraising tougher by banning corporate contributions and capping individual donations. And with the event less than a month away, they’re sticking to their guns.

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