How much people borrow to attend college can become just a small share of what they wind up owing.
Currently, fewer than a quarter of student loan borrowers are repaying their principal, or the amount they originally took out,according to recent remarks made by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos at a conference on financial aid.
That's because their monthly payments are just going to the interest accumulating on their debt or they're not paying anything right now.
In the meantime, their debt is likely growing.
For example, law school graduate Rick Tallini borrowed around $55,000 in the 1990s. He's since struggled to find employment and pay the bills, and today his student loan balance has ballooned to well over $300,000.
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Monday, December 24, 2018
Threats fly as teen Trump supporters confronted over MAGA caps in airport: ‘Take off your racist hats!’
“You’re wearing a racist hat!”
Teens were leaving the Turning Point USA conference in South Florida when they were heckled in the airport by a man triggered after seeing their red Donald Trump MAGA hats.
Group founder Charlie Kirk tweeted shaky video of the incident.
“You’re wearing a racist hat!” a man announced to fellow fliers, apparently trying to get others to gang up on them.
“Take off the racist hats!” he demanded, as one of the students replied, “Merry Christmas, sir.”
“Take off your racist hats!” he ordered again.
“Love the hats,” a passerby remarked.
“I’m not going to take it off,” a student replied as the video ends.
Kirk only identified them as “high school leaders.” He didn’t ID the airport where the incident took place.
Earlier this year, two teens were sitting in a San Antonio Whataburger when a man walked up, ripped the hat off his head and threw a drink in his face.
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Teens were leaving the Turning Point USA conference in South Florida when they were heckled in the airport by a man triggered after seeing their red Donald Trump MAGA hats.
Group founder Charlie Kirk tweeted shaky video of the incident.
“You’re wearing a racist hat!” a man announced to fellow fliers, apparently trying to get others to gang up on them.
“Take off the racist hats!” he demanded, as one of the students replied, “Merry Christmas, sir.”
“Take off your racist hats!” he ordered again.
“Love the hats,” a passerby remarked.
“I’m not going to take it off,” a student replied as the video ends.
Kirk only identified them as “high school leaders.” He didn’t ID the airport where the incident took place.
Earlier this year, two teens were sitting in a San Antonio Whataburger when a man walked up, ripped the hat off his head and threw a drink in his face.
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Chief Justice Roberts stays court order in mystery grand jury probe
The Supreme Court appears to have intervened in the operations of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigations for the first time. But we know precious little about what really is going on, beyond the mechanics of an order issued Sunday afternoon by the Chief Justice of the United States.
That order was reproduced in a tweet yesterday showing the relevant text:
That order was reproduced in a tweet yesterday showing the relevant text:
Saudi student wanted for murder of Oregon teen fled US in private jet helped by Saudi consulate
Officials say they are doing everything they can to get a Saudi Arabian murder suspect back to the United States after he fled on board a private jet with the help of his country's consulate.
Investigators believe Abdulrahman Semeer Noorah used an illicit passport to flee the country having cut off his police-issued ankle tracker as he skipped his $1million bail.
Noorah has denied the manslaughter of 15-year-old Fallon Smart who was hit by his gold Lexus when he illegally swerved around stopped traffic letting the teenager cross the road in Portland, Oregon in August 2016.
The Portland Community College man went missing June 10, 2017 – just two weeks before he was due to stand trial - and the Saudi government confirmed to US Marshals this July that Noorah had returned to Saudi Arabia seven days after he went missing.
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Investigators believe Abdulrahman Semeer Noorah used an illicit passport to flee the country having cut off his police-issued ankle tracker as he skipped his $1million bail.
Noorah has denied the manslaughter of 15-year-old Fallon Smart who was hit by his gold Lexus when he illegally swerved around stopped traffic letting the teenager cross the road in Portland, Oregon in August 2016.
The Portland Community College man went missing June 10, 2017 – just two weeks before he was due to stand trial - and the Saudi government confirmed to US Marshals this July that Noorah had returned to Saudi Arabia seven days after he went missing.
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LOL: CNN 'Investigation' Uncovers What We Already Knew: Criminals Break Gun Laws
CNN decided to "investigate" the number of people who lie on the 4473 forms, which are used when someone purchases a firearm. It asks basic questions like your name, address, date of birth and if you've committed a number of criminal violations. When you fill it out you check a simple "yes" or "no" on each question. Lying on 4473 is a felony that can result in a hefty fine and up to 10 years in prison.
What's silly is it took an "investigation" for CNN to realize a fact that gun rights advocates have been saying for years: criminals lie. And the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) very rarely prosecutes those who are caught lying on the form.
Here's what their "investigation" found:
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What's silly is it took an "investigation" for CNN to realize a fact that gun rights advocates have been saying for years: criminals lie. And the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) very rarely prosecutes those who are caught lying on the form.
Here's what their "investigation" found:
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Julian Castro admits he'd pull troops out of Syria after blasting 'erratic' Trump
Former San Antonio mayor seen as likely 2020 Democratic presidential candidate
After blasting President Trump for his “erratic” decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro admitted Sunday that he would have done the same thing.
The difference is that he would have handled it differently, said Mr. Castro, a potential 2020 Democratic presidential contender.
“I think that many folks recognize that it was time for us to pull out of Syria; however, here’s the thing,” said Mr. Castro on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Once you’re there, you have to make sure that you have a plan for your operations there and also for your withdrawal.”
Mr. Trump came under fire for announcing last week that he would pull U.S. troops from Syria, spurring the resignations of both Defense Secretary James Mattis and presidential special envoy for ISIS Brett McGurk.
Mr. Castro, who served as Housing and Urban Development Secretary under President Barack Obama, said he would announced Jan. 12 on whether he will seek the Democratic presidential nomination.
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After blasting President Trump for his “erratic” decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro admitted Sunday that he would have done the same thing.
The difference is that he would have handled it differently, said Mr. Castro, a potential 2020 Democratic presidential contender.
“I think that many folks recognize that it was time for us to pull out of Syria; however, here’s the thing,” said Mr. Castro on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Once you’re there, you have to make sure that you have a plan for your operations there and also for your withdrawal.”
Mr. Trump came under fire for announcing last week that he would pull U.S. troops from Syria, spurring the resignations of both Defense Secretary James Mattis and presidential special envoy for ISIS Brett McGurk.
Mr. Castro, who served as Housing and Urban Development Secretary under President Barack Obama, said he would announced Jan. 12 on whether he will seek the Democratic presidential nomination.
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Iowa judge tosses charges after prosecutor shows up drunk
A fed-up judge in Iowa tossed charges against a man who confessed to sexually assaulting a minor — because the prosecutor in the case showed up to court drunk.
Clarke County attorney Michelle Rivera was nabbed on Oct. 18 for her tipsy appearance in an Osceola courtroom — just moments before the defendant was about to plead guilty and be sentenced in the case.
As a result, Rivera missed a crucial legal deadline requiring the man to be tried within one year of his arraignment.
The lush of a lawyer was arrested for the second time last week after allegedly driving to the courthouse drunk, WHO TV reported. She was also charged with child endangerment for driving her daughter to daycare minutes before someone called 911 about her erratic driving.
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Clarke County attorney Michelle Rivera was nabbed on Oct. 18 for her tipsy appearance in an Osceola courtroom — just moments before the defendant was about to plead guilty and be sentenced in the case.
As a result, Rivera missed a crucial legal deadline requiring the man to be tried within one year of his arraignment.
The lush of a lawyer was arrested for the second time last week after allegedly driving to the courthouse drunk, WHO TV reported. She was also charged with child endangerment for driving her daughter to daycare minutes before someone called 911 about her erratic driving.
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America Is Not the Fifth Most Dangerous Country for Journalists, You Idiots
This blog is the spiritual successor to my previous similarly titled blog post that debunked a widely-reported study claiming America was one of the top ten most dangerous countries for women. As I pointed out at the time, the report heavily weighted the subjective judgements of "experts." The result is that a bunch of Westerners polled at the height of the #MeToo failed to look beyond their bubble and declared the U.S. the third-worst country in the world for "sexual violence." Seriously.
Now we have another drastic finding being picked up and spread by the media.
These stories are based on a report put out by Reporters Without Borders, a group that does a lot of good calling attention to threats to journalism worldwide. Unlike the violence against women report, it actually relies on things like numbers and data. So there's that.
What the report actually found was, yes, the U.S. had the fifth-most journalists killed in the line of duty in 2018, tied with India and behind Afghanistan, Syria, Mexico, and Yemen. But it's mathematically illiterate to take that datapoint and claiming it proves more abstractly America is the fifth "most dangerous country for journalists," behind countries such as Russia and North Korea.
First, it makes little sense to use the raw number of deaths in country-by-country comparisons, rather than the rate of journalists killed. The U.S is the third-most-populous country in the world. Even if the rate of journalist deaths remained consistent across all countries, the U.S. would rank in the top five of total deaths. It might sound bad to hear the U.S. had six times as many journalists killed this year as Slovakia, but when the U.S. has around sixty times the population, Slovakia is actually ten times more dangerous.
Second (and I don't want to come across as glib here, because even one death is a tragedy), the grand total of journalists killed in the U.S. this year was six. The global total was sixty-three. The death of a journalist is a very, very rare event, rare enough that even a small number of unlikely incidents is enough to catapult a nation into the ranks of the "most dangerous."
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Now we have another drastic finding being picked up and spread by the media.
These stories are based on a report put out by Reporters Without Borders, a group that does a lot of good calling attention to threats to journalism worldwide. Unlike the violence against women report, it actually relies on things like numbers and data. So there's that.
What the report actually found was, yes, the U.S. had the fifth-most journalists killed in the line of duty in 2018, tied with India and behind Afghanistan, Syria, Mexico, and Yemen. But it's mathematically illiterate to take that datapoint and claiming it proves more abstractly America is the fifth "most dangerous country for journalists," behind countries such as Russia and North Korea.
First, it makes little sense to use the raw number of deaths in country-by-country comparisons, rather than the rate of journalists killed. The U.S is the third-most-populous country in the world. Even if the rate of journalist deaths remained consistent across all countries, the U.S. would rank in the top five of total deaths. It might sound bad to hear the U.S. had six times as many journalists killed this year as Slovakia, but when the U.S. has around sixty times the population, Slovakia is actually ten times more dangerous.
Second (and I don't want to come across as glib here, because even one death is a tragedy), the grand total of journalists killed in the U.S. this year was six. The global total was sixty-three. The death of a journalist is a very, very rare event, rare enough that even a small number of unlikely incidents is enough to catapult a nation into the ranks of the "most dangerous."
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Trump slams top US envoy's resignation over president's
Donald Trump has taken a swipe at critics of his decision to withdraw US troops from Syria by saying if anyone else brought soldiers home they would be branded a 'hero'.
In a series of fiery tweets tonight, POTUS also dismissed the top US envoy in the fight against ISIS as an 'Obama appointee' who he claimed he did not know.
Earlier today Brett McGurk announced that he is resigning in the wake of Trump's decision to pull troops out of Syria and just days after Secretary of Defense James Mattis stepped down.
McGurk was to leave the role in February but moved up his departure date by two months to December 31 after very publicly stating that the move to pull American forces at this time could result in a 'possibly catastrophic outcome'.
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In a series of fiery tweets tonight, POTUS also dismissed the top US envoy in the fight against ISIS as an 'Obama appointee' who he claimed he did not know.
Earlier today Brett McGurk announced that he is resigning in the wake of Trump's decision to pull troops out of Syria and just days after Secretary of Defense James Mattis stepped down.
McGurk was to leave the role in February but moved up his departure date by two months to December 31 after very publicly stating that the move to pull American forces at this time could result in a 'possibly catastrophic outcome'.
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More Good News! Obama Appointee and Adviser behind Iraq Disaster and ISIS Nightmare Resigns (Two Months Early) Over Mean Trump!
Media outrage hit another 10 out of 10 on the outrage scale today when Brett McGurk, the special presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, abruptly resigned.
U.S. President Barack Obama (R) meets with Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to counter the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) United States Marine Corps (USMC) General John Allen (C) and Deputy Special Presidential Envoy Brett McGurk (L) in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington September 16, 2014. REUTERS/Gary Cameron
Now here’s the rest of the story…
McGurk was a long-time Obama adviser on Iraq which turned out to be an historic failure and complete global disaster. The Middle East and Europe are still suffering following that foreign policy nightmare.
Obama appointed him to his ISIS ambassador after the Islamic State took over most of Syria and Iraq.
U.S. President Barack Obama (R) meets with Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to counter the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) United States Marine Corps (USMC) General John Allen (C) and Deputy Special Presidential Envoy Brett McGurk (L) in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington September 16, 2014. REUTERS/Gary Cameron
Now here’s the rest of the story…
McGurk was a long-time Obama adviser on Iraq which turned out to be an historic failure and complete global disaster. The Middle East and Europe are still suffering following that foreign policy nightmare.
Obama appointed him to his ISIS ambassador after the Islamic State took over most of Syria and Iraq.
Two Detroit women arrested after trying to steal from Target while store hosted 'Shop with a Cop'
Two Detroit women were caught trying to steal almost $2,000 of goods from a Target while the store was hosting a fundraising event for area police to help disadvantaged children pick out Christmas presents.
Keiana Wilson, 40, and 18-year-old Dana Johnson were apprehended late on Wednesday night while the store was packed with officers and children for a 'Shop with a Cop' event.
'I couldn't believe it,' Bloomfield Township Police Sgt. Dan Brown explained to theDetroit Free Press.
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Keiana Wilson, 40, and 18-year-old Dana Johnson were apprehended late on Wednesday night while the store was packed with officers and children for a 'Shop with a Cop' event.
'I couldn't believe it,' Bloomfield Township Police Sgt. Dan Brown explained to theDetroit Free Press.
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Mike Pompeo’s State Department mocks US anti-ISIS envoy over resignation: ‘Good job, Brett’
The State Department has lashed out at Brett McGurk, who resigned in protest at President Trump's Syria pull-out, accusing him of failing in his role as top U.S. diplomat for the coalition to defeat the Islamic State and lying about the timing of and reasons for his departure.
A senior State Department official derided McGurk, who was appointed by President Obama and has been in place since 2015, as ineffective. “The conflict in Syria has been ongoing for six years,” the senior State Department official said sarcastically. "Good job, Brett.”
Another source close to the circumstances surrounding McGurk’s resignation bitterly accused him of twisting the truth to increase the amount he could earn in speaking fees despite being treated “graciously” by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
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A senior State Department official derided McGurk, who was appointed by President Obama and has been in place since 2015, as ineffective. “The conflict in Syria has been ongoing for six years,” the senior State Department official said sarcastically. "Good job, Brett.”
Another source close to the circumstances surrounding McGurk’s resignation bitterly accused him of twisting the truth to increase the amount he could earn in speaking fees despite being treated “graciously” by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
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'Bushies' creep into Trump's administration
Trump is suspicious of people who have worked for the Bush family, but has little choice but to keep hiring them — to the anger of some hard-core supporters.
President Donald Trump uses the term “Bushie” as shorthand for anyone he considers too establishment, thinks too conventionally, or is just, in the president’s mind, a pain.
But a strange thing has been happening within his administration lately. Bush administration alums now run huge swaths of Trump’s government. They’re at high levels of his departments of Homeland Security, Labor, State, Health and Human Services, and Treasury. At the White House, they staff his legal and domestic policy offices.
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President Donald Trump uses the term “Bushie” as shorthand for anyone he considers too establishment, thinks too conventionally, or is just, in the president’s mind, a pain.
But a strange thing has been happening within his administration lately. Bush administration alums now run huge swaths of Trump’s government. They’re at high levels of his departments of Homeland Security, Labor, State, Health and Human Services, and Treasury. At the White House, they staff his legal and domestic policy offices.
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The Anatomy Of A Government Shutdown
Thomas Sowell used to ask his students to imagine a government bureaucracy that had two functions. One function was to provide medicine to sick children, and the other function was to construct statues of Benedict Arnold. He would then ask his students that if the bureaucracy suffered budget cuts, which function would the bureau stop funding?
The intuitive answer to those of us who are not bureaucrats is to cut the funding to Benedict Arnold statues, of course. One might even ask why we are funding statues in honor of a traitor to begin with? But, Sowell would tell his students, the bureaucracy would actually be more inclined to cut funding to the medicine to sick children.
Bureaucrats and politicians, like anybody else, are self-interested individuals, and their interests are to enjoy a bureaucracy with as large a tax-payer-funded budget as possible. When they are faced with budget cuts, it makes no sense to cut funding from programs that the vast majority of taxpayers wouldn’t care to fund in the first place. There would be no outcry. But by cutting funds in an area that creates real pain for certain people within the population — say, sick children or members of the military — the public will predictably erupt with outrage, demanding that the original budget be reinstated (or even increased!) so people don’t suffer.
With President Trump’s demands for tax-payer funds allocated to his border wall, his reaction was to threaten a government shutdown. This tactic seems to be an increasingly popular tactic for politicians who want support for ever-increasing budgets and higher taxes. The last so-called “shut down” only took place five years ago under Barack Obama, and it seems many people have already forgotten the political theater that accompanied it. “Shutting down” the government apparently meant paying government employees to set up traffic cones around monuments and abstaining from making Twitter updates, among other things.
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The intuitive answer to those of us who are not bureaucrats is to cut the funding to Benedict Arnold statues, of course. One might even ask why we are funding statues in honor of a traitor to begin with? But, Sowell would tell his students, the bureaucracy would actually be more inclined to cut funding to the medicine to sick children.
Bureaucrats and politicians, like anybody else, are self-interested individuals, and their interests are to enjoy a bureaucracy with as large a tax-payer-funded budget as possible. When they are faced with budget cuts, it makes no sense to cut funding from programs that the vast majority of taxpayers wouldn’t care to fund in the first place. There would be no outcry. But by cutting funds in an area that creates real pain for certain people within the population — say, sick children or members of the military — the public will predictably erupt with outrage, demanding that the original budget be reinstated (or even increased!) so people don’t suffer.
With President Trump’s demands for tax-payer funds allocated to his border wall, his reaction was to threaten a government shutdown. This tactic seems to be an increasingly popular tactic for politicians who want support for ever-increasing budgets and higher taxes. The last so-called “shut down” only took place five years ago under Barack Obama, and it seems many people have already forgotten the political theater that accompanied it. “Shutting down” the government apparently meant paying government employees to set up traffic cones around monuments and abstaining from making Twitter updates, among other things.
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Three Arkansas Shopkeepers Plead Guilty to $400,000 Food Stamp Fraud
Three Arkansas shopkeepers pleaded guilty Wednesday to carrying out a $400,000 food stamp fraud scheme where they used food stamps to purchase items that they would resell in their stores.
Raja Khani Zaman and his two sons, Haroon “Harry” Zaman and Ahmed Zaman, pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to one count of conspiracy to traffic in food stamp benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Raja and Harry Zaman pleaded guilty to additional charges, including filing a false tax return and money laundering conspiracy, court documents stated.
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Raja Khani Zaman and his two sons, Haroon “Harry” Zaman and Ahmed Zaman, pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to one count of conspiracy to traffic in food stamp benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Raja and Harry Zaman pleaded guilty to additional charges, including filing a false tax return and money laundering conspiracy, court documents stated.
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Deputies Get Shots Fired Call, Find Invasion Suspect Dead in Yard
Davidson County, North Carolina, Sheriff’s deputies responded to reports of shots fired Thursday night and arrived to find a home invasion suspect dead in the yard.
The Winston-Salem Journal reports that the body of 21-year-old Silvestre Begley was discovered about 9;30 pm. He was lying in a yard in the 100 block of Upton Street.
Fox 8 reports that Begley had been shot once. The homeowner told deputies that he shot because Begley was allegedly “armed and tried to get into the home.”
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The Winston-Salem Journal reports that the body of 21-year-old Silvestre Begley was discovered about 9;30 pm. He was lying in a yard in the 100 block of Upton Street.
Fox 8 reports that Begley had been shot once. The homeowner told deputies that he shot because Begley was allegedly “armed and tried to get into the home.”
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Wells Fargo Laid Off Americans, Outsourced Their Jobs
Wells Fargo, the world’s third-largest United States bank, may have outsourced hundreds of Americans’ jobs to foreign countries after laying off U.S. workers this year.
Analysis conducted by the Charlotte Observer‘s Deon Roberts reveals how the multinational bank laid off hundreds of American workers while sending their jobs overseas.
Last year, Breitbart News reported that about 650 American workers with Wells Fargo were laid off from their jobs in Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Washington. At the same time, Americans were being laid off, the multinational bank announced it would hire an additional 7,000 workers in the Philippines to add to its 4,000-strong workforce in the country.
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Analysis conducted by the Charlotte Observer‘s Deon Roberts reveals how the multinational bank laid off hundreds of American workers while sending their jobs overseas.
Last year, Breitbart News reported that about 650 American workers with Wells Fargo were laid off from their jobs in Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Washington. At the same time, Americans were being laid off, the multinational bank announced it would hire an additional 7,000 workers in the Philippines to add to its 4,000-strong workforce in the country.
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The ridiculous Santa Claus myth should be replaced by the amazing true story of St. Nicholas
It's that time of year when the world falls in love, and every parent takes their child to the local mall to see Santa Claus, the most ridiculous myth ever inflicted on a child's psyche. Instead of telling your child a lie about Santa for the first ten years of their life, which you will ultimately and quite suddenly have to renege, why not tell your child the real story of Saint Nicholas, which is far more powerful and actually the truth?
I know what you're thinking: I'm a monster. I actually told all of my children from a very young age Santa was not real and their friends and family purchase gifts for them for Christmas. The world did not end.
Not only that, but their father and I told them the myth of Santa Claus was based on a real person who is far more inspiring than a fat guy in a red suit.
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I know what you're thinking: I'm a monster. I actually told all of my children from a very young age Santa was not real and their friends and family purchase gifts for them for Christmas. The world did not end.
Not only that, but their father and I told them the myth of Santa Claus was based on a real person who is far more inspiring than a fat guy in a red suit.
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Rand Paul: ‘Armchair Generals Want to Keep Us At War Forever’
Trump doing the right thing by pulling troops out of Syria, he says
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Sunday praised President Donald Trump for doing “exactly what he promised” by withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria — and derided the “armchair generals” in Washington who “want to keep us at war forever.”
In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Paul said he’s “very proud” of Trump’s determination to get troops out of the Middle East.
“This is exactly what he promised … I think people believe that we’ve been at war too long and too many places and that we do need to turn attention to problems we have at home,” he said.
In a separate interview on CBS News’ “Face The Nation,” Paul also lauded the drawdown in Afghanistan — saying savings from that could be the source of wall funding that’s stymied Congress, and triggered a partial government shutdown.
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Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Sunday praised President Donald Trump for doing “exactly what he promised” by withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria — and derided the “armchair generals” in Washington who “want to keep us at war forever.”
In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Paul said he’s “very proud” of Trump’s determination to get troops out of the Middle East.
“This is exactly what he promised … I think people believe that we’ve been at war too long and too many places and that we do need to turn attention to problems we have at home,” he said.
In a separate interview on CBS News’ “Face The Nation,” Paul also lauded the drawdown in Afghanistan — saying savings from that could be the source of wall funding that’s stymied Congress, and triggered a partial government shutdown.
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