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Friday, January 16, 2015

Can You Read at a 7th Grade Level?

Dr. Sandra L. Stotsky, professor emerita at the University of Arkansas, recently said that Renaissance Learning’s latest report revealed that a large number of college freshman are reading at a seventh-grade level.

Stotsky, who received her Ed. D. from Harvard, is a well-known and respected figure in the world of education. She served on the Common Core Validation Committee in 2009-10 and, along with colleague James Milgram, professor of mathematics at Stanford University, refused to approve Common Core’s standards, which she called “inferior.”

In a recent interview with Breitbart Texas, Stotsky said:

We are spending billions of dollars trying to send students to college and maintain them there when, on average, they read at about the grade 6 or 7 level, according to Renaissance Learning’s latest report on what American students in grades 9-12 read, whether assigned or chosen.

Stotsky also pointed out that as a result of students reading on a lower level of difficulty and complexity in high school, colleges now assign a lower reading level of books as summer reading to incoming freshmen.

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Customer Asks Pizza Shop Owner If He Can Buy a Slice for a Homeless Person — The Result Has Sparked a Chain Reaction of Good

When customers enter Rosa’s Fresh Pizza shop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, they can’t miss the hundreds of Post-It notes and letters plastered all over the walls — evidence of customers’ good deeds.

See, patrons at Rosa’s Fresh Pizza are invited to buy $1 slices of pie for the poor, which are, in turn, given out to those in need free of charge.

It’s a program that shop owner Mason Wartman started last year after a customer came in and asked if he could buy a slice to help feed a homeless person. Naturally, Wartman said yes — but it’s what he did next that truly helped set an inspiring pattern in motion.

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The Vaccine Mafia

(NaturalNews) Australia’s vaccine zealots are the most rabid extremist wing of the vaccine medical mafia, and they’ve engaged in tactics like issuing death threats to vaccine educators to try to silence them. Now, they’re trying to get the Australian government to ban the travel visa of Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, a pro-informed-consent educator who has conducted more research into vaccine adverse effects and safety risks than almost anyone else speaking out today.

Australia’s vaccine mafia, it turns out, is absolutely terrified that citizens of Australia might learn the truth about vaccine exemptions, toxic vaccine ingredients (like mercury) and the growing global epidemic of vaccine-damaged children.So they’re running a mafia-style censorship campaign to strong-arm speaking venues to cancel scheduled events where Dr. Tenpenny is scheduled to speak, and they’re even petitioning the Australian government to revoke Dr. Tenpenny’s travel visa, barring her from entering the country altogether.

In the process of all this, they are turning Dr. Sherri Tenpenny in a folk hero and attracting enormous global attention to the unethical tactics and censorship gestapo tactics used by the vaccine industry to silence educators.

The vaccine propaganda of modern medicine is so fragile that it cannot withstand even a single doctor who teaches informed choice

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Pizza Delivery Man Thought He Had Been Given a $7 Tip — but What the Car Dealership Did to Him After Has People Outraged

A car dealership is under fire after a video was posted to YouTube showing its employees arguing with a pizza delivery man over a $7 tip, with one of the staff members at the auto shop using expletives and calling for the man to be fired following a misunderstanding over the bill.

The deliveryman, identified in a Boston Globe report as Jarrid Tansey, an employee at Palace Pizza, can be seen on footage captured inside F&R Auto Sales in Westport, Massachusetts, Saturday, returning tip money he had been given during a previous trip to deliver food to the dealership.

The initial bill for the order of pizza and drinks came to $42 and some change and Tansey was reportedly given $50, comprised of two $20 bills and two $5 bills. The staffers apparently didn’t ask for change and the delivery man left with a $7 tip — or so he thought.

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Boom Goes The Dynamite: The Crashing Price Of Oil Is Going To Rip The Global Economy To Shreds

If you were waiting for a “black swan event” to come along and devastate the global economy, you don’t have to wait any longer. As I write this, the price of U.S. oil is sitting at $45.76 a barrel. It has fallen by more than 60 dollars a barrel since June. There is only one other time in history when we have seen anything like this happen before. That was in 2008, just prior to the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. But following the financial crisis of 2008, the price of oil rebounded fairly rapidly. As you will see below, there are very strong reasons to believe that it will not happen this time. And the longer the price of oil stays this low, the worse our problems are going to get. At a price of less than $50 a barrel, it is just a matter of time before we see a huge wave of energy company bankruptcies, massive job losses, a junk bond crash followed by a stock market crash, and a crisis in commodity derivatives unlike anything that we have ever seen before. So let’s hope that a very unlikely miracle happens and the price of oil rebounds substantially in the months ahead. Because if not, the price of oil is going to absolutely rip the global economy to shreds.

What amazes me is that there are still many economic “experts” in the mainstream media that are proclaiming that the collapse in the price of oil is going to be a good thing for the U.S. economy.

The only precedent that we can compare the current crash to is the oil price collapse of 2008. You can see both crashes on the chart below…

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Goods held hostage in West Coast port battle

LOS ANGELES -- Row after row of shipping containers are piling up dockside at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. A billion dollars of new cargo comes through here every day - and just sits.

Brian Jablon runs Stansport, a company that supplies camping gear to businesses including: Amazon, Target, and Home Depot.

"Right now, there are 32 containers we have sitting out in the ocean we're waiting to get in the door," Jablon told me.

Lisa Foster is running into the same problem. She owns One Bag at a Time, which sells reusable shopping bags to retail stores.

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Rand Paul Hires Campaign Manager in Clear Nod to 2016 Run

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has hired a presidential campaign manager — in all but name — to direct his expected 2016 quest for the White House.

But, for the time being, Chip Englander, 33, will hold the title of senior adviser, The Washington Post reported.

Englander ran Republican Bruce Rauner's winning gubernatorial campaign in President Barack Obama's home state of Illinois. He managed a $70 million budget while avoiding social issues that might have alienated Democratic voters, according to the Post.

With the addition of Englander, Paul continues to consolidate his campaign team.

His chief political adviser Doug Stafford said, "Chip Englander has proved he is among the top managers in the business, as evidenced by the historic Rauner race and his 15 years of grassroots experience," the Post reported.

"America has intractable problems and it's going to take a transformational leader to fix them," Englander said. "Senator Paul is going to be the bold, transformational figure in this race."

Paul's non-interventionist foreign policy combined with his anti-tax, anti-big government domestic stance can create a non-conventional winning coalition, Englander told the Post.

"Some politicians run campaigns from television studios. That's not the way I do things, and that's not the way you win," Englander told the Post.

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Flu vaccine not working well; only 23 percent effective

NEW YORK (AP) - This year's flu vaccine is doing a pretty crummy job. It's only 23 percent effective, which is one of the worst performances in the last decade, according to a government study released Thursday.

The poor showing is primarily because the vaccine doesn't include the bug that is making most people sick, health officials say. In the last decade, flu vaccines at their best were 50 to 60 percent effective.

"This is an uncommon year," said Dr. Alicia Fry, a flu vaccine expert at the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who was involved in the study.

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Yes, the Federal Reserve has enormous power over who is president

The arc of the political universe is long, but it bends towards monetary policy.

That's the boring truth that nobody wants to hear. Forget about the gaffes, the horserace, and even the personalities. Elections are about the economy, stupid, and the economy is mostly controlled by monetary policy. That's why every big ideological turning point—1896, 1920, 1932, 1980, and maybe 2008—has come after a big monetary shock.

Think about it this way: Bad monetary policy means a bad economy, which gives power back to the party that didn't have it before. And so long as the monetary problem gets fixed, the economy will too, and the new government's policies will, whatever their merits, get the credit. That's how ideology changes.

In 1896, for example, Republicans completed their transformation from being the anti-slavery party to the anti-inflation one. Back then, the U.S. was on the gold standard, but there wasn't enough gold. Miners had found so little of it that overall prices were falling, which was particularly bad news for anyone who'd borrowed money. That's because wages fall if prices do, so debts that don't become harder to pay back. The result was two decades of slower-than-it-should-have-been growth where the economy was in recession more often than not.

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George Soros funds Ferguson protests, hopes to spur civil action

Liberal billionaire gave at least $33 million in one year to groups that emboldened activists 
 
There’s a solitary man at the financial center of the Ferguson protest movement. No, it’s not victim Michael Brown or Officer Darren Wilson. It’s not even the Rev. Al Sharpton, despite his ubiquitous campaign on TV and the streets.

Rather, it’s liberal billionaire George Soros, who has built a business empire that dominates across the ocean in Europe while forging a political machine powered by nonprofit foundations that impacts American politics and policy, not unlike what he did with MoveOn.org.

Mr. Soros spurred the Ferguson protest movement through years of funding and mobilizing groups across the U.S., according to interviews with key players and financial records reviewed by The Washington Times.

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Top 5 Concealed Carry Handguns

Van Buren, AR --(Ammoland.com)- It’s often asked what I prefer as a concealed carryhandgun.

Many of my students ask for guidance for a reliable, comfortable model.

The truth is, it always comes down to the user and what feels right, but I have compiled a list of models I prefer with a little info about each:

HK45C / 745037-A5 The HK45 is a testament to the innovative and superb engineering of HK…This model just feels right. In terms of accuracy, I feel that the HK45 is one of the better shooting HK handguns I’ve used over the years (all of which have been spot on). Includes a standard rail for attachment of a light, which is a big plus in my book. The only modification I can suggest out of the box is adding some grip tape to the sides of the unit. A factory threaded barrel is available.

Sig Sauer P229 Scorpion This model is very comfortable. Traditional feel and an excellent fit and finish – I’ve been very impressed with some of the new SKUs from Sig and I think that ths Scorpion is by far my favorite. Comes in 9mm, there is also a threaded barrel option for those of you seeking a suppressable model.

Md. couple investigated for letting children, 6 and 10, walk neighborhood alone

A Maryland couple is reportedly under investigation for allowing their 6- and 10-year-old children to walk around the neighborhood together without an adult.

Danielle and Alexander Meitiv, of Silver Spring, say the investigation is an invasion of their privacy and infringes on their rights as parents, a local CBS affiliate reported.

“I grew up in New York City in the ‘70s and nobody hesitated to let their kids walk around. The only thing that’s changed between then and now is our fear,” Danielle Meitiv told the station.

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Fighting for the Second-Shift Worker

A conservative policy summit seeks solutions to help working Americans, not big business.

‘Let’s be defined by what we’re for and come up with solutions.”

That was the advice that newly elected Representative Barry Loudermilk (R., Ga.) gave the crowd yesterday on the first day of a two-day conservative policy summit organized by Heritage Action (of which I am CEO). He was in good company, as the summit featured nine members of Congress discussing innovative conservative policy solutions, such as the RAISE Act. Introduced by Representative Todd Rokita (R., Ind.), this legislation would remove union-imposed wage ceilings. Yes, you read that right: Conservatives are trying to help increase workers’ wages and are being opposed by organized labor.

The theme for our summit is “Opportunity for All, Favoritism to None.” In addition to the event, a new 192-page book emphasizes our goal, which is to advance conservative policies that ease the burdens on working families and create new paths to opportunity for all Americans. As Representative Jim Jordan (R., Ohio) put it yesterday, “For people like the second-grade teacher and the second-shift worker — that is who we’re supposed to represent.”

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Concealed carry permit [Poll]

Should Gov.-elect Larry Hogan select a new state police superintendent who is likely to make it easier to get a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Maryland?
VoteView ResultsPolldaddy.com
If this doesn't work, GO HERE.

Funeral Arrangements For DFC John Brune

Wicomico County Sheriff's Office

Funeral arrangements have been made for DFC John Brune. The funeral will be held at Holloway Funeral Home on Tuesday (1/20/2015) at 11 am, with viewings Monday night at 6pm and Tuesday at 10am.

http://www.hollowayfh.com/book-of…/…/Brune-John/obituary.php

White House Claims Power to Regulate, Tax Internet Without Congress

The White House dropped a bombshell on Thursday byannouncing that FCC already has the authority to take over regulating and taxing the Internet without Congressional approval.

Under “network neutrality” proceedings, the FCC could extend its 16.1% fee on interstate telecommunications services and relay fees to the Internet. The action would more than double the “universal service” revenue it collected in 2014, from $8 billion to $16 billion.

Although Congress has mandated the general nature of the federal universal service fund and telecommunications relay services, it is the FCC that has the sole authority to set the budget size and the fee structure to perform its regulatory mandate.

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Gallup CEO Blasts US Leadership "The Economy Is Not Coming Back"

The U.S. now ranks not first, not second, not third, but 12th among developed nations in terms of business startup activity. Countries such as Hungary, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Sweden, Israel and Italy all have higher startup rates than America does.

We are behind in starting new firms per capita, and this is our single most serious economic problem. Yet it seems like a secret. You never see it mentioned in the media, nor hear from a politician that, for the first time in 35 years, American business deaths now outnumber business births.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the total number of new business startups and business closures per year -- the birth and death rates of American companies -- have crossed for the first time since the measurement began. I am referring to employer businesses, those with one or more employees, the real engines of economic growth. Four hundred thousand new businesses are being born annually nationwide, while 470,000 per year are dying.

You may not have seen this graph before.

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BLACK COP KILLS 95 Year-Old WWII Vet Because He Refused Medical Treatment

The family of a 95-year-old WWII vet is filing a wrongful death suit against Park Forest police who killed the man last year, saying that he was “not a threat to anyone.”

The family of John Wrana, filed a $5 million lawsuit against six police officers and the Village of Park Forest in federal court Friday.

The family alleges that the officers should have known that a bean bag round, fired at point blank range, at 190 mph, would have killed the 95-year-old man.

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County asks Atlantic Broadband to bring back WBOC

CENTREVILLE — The Queen Anne’s County Commissioners sent a letter Jan. 6 to Atlantic Broadband, the county’s cable television provider, asking the company to return WBOC, CBS-affiliate Channel 16 out of Salisbury, to the local cable lineup.

The letter, addressed to Sam McGill, local ABB vice president and general manager, reads, “We would like to take this opportunity to express our displeasure with the removal of WBOC Channel 16 programming from the Atlantic Broadband offerings for cable subscribers in Queen Anne’s County. We have had a number of residents call with concerns/complaints about this decision and we share their concerns.”

Commissioner Paul Comfort said he had spoken with McGill and was told Atlantic Broadband only has to offer one CBS station. Queen Anne’s County is in the Baltimore “must carry” region, so ABB only has to offer WJZ, Channel 13, out of Baltimore. ABB added WUSA, Channel 9, out of Washington, D.C., many years ago to meet viewer demands for area news and sports. With WBOC, the cable franchise was offering three CBS stations.

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Proposal Would Restore Wins for Penn State, Joe Paterno

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — The NCAA on Friday announced a proposed agreement that would restore 112 wins by Penn State's football team that were wiped out during the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal and would put the late Joe Paterno back as the winningest coach in major college football history.

College sports' governing body announced the proposed deal weeks before a scheduled trial in state court on the legality of the 2012 consent decree it would replace.

The new deal would direct a $60 million fine to address child abuse be spent within Pennsylvania and would resolve that lawsuit.

The deal still must be approved by the NCAA and Penn State boards. Penn State trustees' chairman Keith Masser told The Associated Press that board members were having a private discussion early Friday afternoon about the lawsuit.

The announcement follows the NCAA's decision last year to reinstate the school's full complement of football scholarships and let Penn State participate in post-season play, and comes just days after a federal judge declined to rule on the consent decree's constitutionality. The proposed settlement does not discuss the validity of the original consent decree.

The NCAA said continuing the litigation would only delay the distribution of funds to sex abuse survivors.

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Diarrhea-causing illness keeps Perth Amboy school closed

PERTH AMBOY – Students attending William C. McGinnis Middle School and their teachers are not scheduled to return to class until at least Thursday as the district continues cleaning the school after an adult was diagnosed with a contagious diarrhea illness last week.

And if the cleaning is not completed by Wednesday, the school could be closed even longer.

School officials have not indicated when the school days would be made up. A message left with Board of Education President Samuel Lebreault was not returned by deadline.

All other district schools have continued to operate on a normal schedule. McGinnis School, 271 State St., is one of two district middle schools.

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Clemson Group: Suspend FIRST AMENDMENT

A radical student group at Clemson University is demanding that administrators at the taxpayer-funded public school “prosecute defamatory speech” to fix a “pattern of social injustice.”

The student group is called See the Stripes, Campus Reform reports.

Though the See the Stripes catalog of grievances is long, the most notable one involves a demand to suspend free speech protection under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

“[W]e want a public commitment from the Clemson University Administration to prosecute criminally predatory behaviors and defamatory speech committed by members of the Clemson University community (including, but not limited to, those facilitated by usage of social media),” the group proclaims.

See the Stripes also wants to rename an “offensively named” campus building. The odious edifice is Tillman Hall, which is named after Benjamin “Pitchfork Ben” Tillman, a Democrat who sought to limit the rights of black people in the decades after the Civil War.

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“Dodgeball Madness” Tournament

DSP News Release: Delaware Law Enforcement for Special Olympics is Hosting the 5th Annual “Dodgeball Madness” Tournament

Location:
Caesar Rodney High School
239 Old North Road
Camden, DE 19934

Date of Event:
Saturday, March 28, 2015

Time:
Check in at 8:00 a.m.
Competition begins at 8:30 a.m.

Resume:
Delaware Law Enforcement for Special Olympics is hosting a Dodgeball Tournament to benefit the athletes of Special Olympics Delaware on Saturday, March 28, 2015 beginning at 8:00 a.m. The tournament will be held in the Caesar Rodney High School Gymnasium.

The tournament will consist of the first 36 teams to register. Each team is guaranteed to play in at least eight games. The minimum age to participate is 16 years old. Teams must consist of six players and may have two alternate players. Teams can consist of all male, female, or co-ed members. Games will be played under the rules and regulations of the National Dodgeball League. Food and refreshments will be available to purchase on site.

Reason to Dodge and Throw? Special Olympics Delaware is an organization that changes lives by promoting understanding, acceptance and inclusion between people with and without intellectual disabilities. Through year round sports training, athletic competition and related programs conducted for more than 3,600 children and adults with intellectual disabilities, the organization creates a model community that celebrates people’s diverse gifts. Special Olympics Delaware builds sports skills, confidence, strength, motivation and self-esteem – not just for athletes, but for everyone involved. Dodgeball Madness has raised over $57,000.00 for Special Olympics Delaware since its inception back in 2011.

The entry fee for each team member is $50.00. All team members will receive a Dodgeball Madness event t-shirt and a sandwich voucher courtesy of Camden's local Chick-Fil-A restaurant. Deadline to register is Friday, March 13, 2015. To register for the event, please visit www.sode.org or call Special Olympics Delaware (302)-831-3482.

What these Officers used as target practice is beyond Distasteful

GO HERE to view article.

Wicomico Public Libraries' Centre Branch Health & Wellness Fair.

Newlywed Dies of Sepsis After Getting Flu

A Wisconsin newlywed started to feel sick with the flu on a Monday. By Friday, she was dead.

Katie McQuestion, a 26-year-old radiologist from Kenosha, Wisconsin, got a flu shot to comply with hospital policy and had no underlying medical conditions, but she caught the flu and developed a serious complication from it: sepsis. She died on Jan. 2.

"She was the picture of health," her mother told ABC News, adding that McQuestion was married in September. "No 29-year-old should have to bury his wife."

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Sussex County Drug Unit Arrests Two for Heroin Distribution


Lewes, DE – The Delaware State Police Sussex County Drug Unit have arrested two people after the culmination of a three month long investigation into illegal drug sales from a residence on Cinnamon Lane in Angola Beach and Estates.

On Thursday January 15, 2015 around 6:30 a.m., the Sussex County Drug Task Force along with the assistance of the Sussex County Governor’s Task Force (GTF) and Delaware State Police Special Operations Response Team (SORT) conducted a search warrant in the 23000 block of Cinnamon Lane in the development of Angola Beach and Estates. Upon executing the search warrant, Calvin L. Ushery, 31, and Allen Simmons, 42, were taken into custody without incident. The search revealed a total of 253 bags of heroin weighing approximately 3.795 grams, two Ruger rifles, a fully loaded .38 caliber revolver, and drug paraphernalia.

Calvin Ushery (photo attached - glasses) was charged with Maintaining a Drug Property and was incarcerated at Sussex Correctional Institution on $5,000.00 secured bond. Allen Simmons (photo attached – grey sweatshirt) was charged with Possession with Intent to Deliver Heroin, Possession of a Deadly Weapon by a Person Prohibited, Possession of a Controlled Substance (Heroin), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and is being held at Sussex Correctional Institution on $50,200.00 cash bond.

Two young children killed in house fire after mom left them alone

Two young children have died in a house fire after their mom left them alone so she could get her hair done.

Ciarria Johnson left her four-year-old daughter, Ta'shae Thompson Johnson, and three-year-old son, Clifton Thompson Johnson, alone without supervision on Monday evening.

The 21-year-old also left two gas space heaters turned on in the wood-framed home in Bastrop, Louisiana.

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It Begins: IRS Launches International Data Exchange Service

Yesterday, the IRS announced the International Data Exchange Service.

If you’ve not heard of it, it’s is an outgrowth of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which requires every single bank in the world to get in bed with IRS to share information about customers.

We’ve said this over and over, FATCA is probably the dumbest law in the history of the United States. And I don’t say that lightly, because there’s definitely stiff competition.

Like any other bankrupt government, the US government has taken to intimidating its own citizens and the entire world in an attempt to make ends meet.

Their hope was that the minority of people committing tax evasion would come clean and that it would result in some huge boost in tax revenue.

But the fact is that tax revenues actually haven’t improved at all.

Looking at tax revenue as a percentage of GDP, the numbers haven’t budged at all from their long-term average. Not a single bit.

So in actuality, FATCA has done nothing positive for America.

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Obama's Gun Control: Shut Down Bank Accounts

The Department of Justice, which got away with Fast and Furious — selling guns to Mexican drug cartels — is also getting away with this. It runs gun stores out of business by quietly telling their banks to close their accounts. The banks comply. The accounts are closed. Then the gun store’s doors are closed.

Without banking, a business is wiped out, unless it is financed by the Department of Justice, the way that Fast and Furious was.

Congress did not authorize this program, but what power does Congress have? If it sits mute on the sidelines, not much. It did not approve of Fast and Furious, either. That did not slow down Eric Holder and his band of merry gun runners.

Who made this decision at the DoJ about shutting down gun stores? Don’t ask. Don’t tell. Especially if you’re Congress.

Is Congress going to stop funding this? Congress has already passed Obama’s budget for fiscal 2015. It has nothing to say about this. It has already capitulated.

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Darrell Winfield, the real Marlboro Man, dies at 85

(CNN)Tally-ho, Marlboro Man.

Best known as the rugged cowboy who starred in the Marlboro Man cigarette advertisements, Darrell Winfield died Monday at home in Wyoming at age 85.

His cause of death was not listed in his obituary on a Fremont County, Wyoming, news website.

Often called the most successful tobacco advertising campaign ever, the Marlboro Man appealed to American men because of his masculinity, individuality and freedom.

Though some of the Marlboro Men in the famous cigarette advertisements launched in the 1950s were actors, Winfield was the real thing.

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U of MD Anti-Farming article

I want to call to your attention a weblog article released by Dr. William C. Dennison, a professor of marine science and the Vice President for Science Application at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, on the University’s web site. Dr. Dennison wrote a blog entitled, “ How Big Chicken Stole Chesapeake Bay”. The blog was penned in the fashion of the Dr. Seuss classic, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. The blog was published on December 25, 2014 and, as of the date of this email, it is still up on the website.

Dr. Dennison’s blog is another attack on agriculture and the poultry industry on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. What is more egregious, is that he used the university’s web site to publish his commentary. Didn’t the University of Maryland employees learn anything from the Hudson case, when the U. of MD., School of Law participated in the suit of a farm family for an alleged clean water violation and the legislature responded negatively to the law school’s participation? Why is a university professor still using a taxpayer funded resource at Maryland’s land grant college to attack agriculture?

I am bringing this matter to your attention and requesting that you consider an appropriate response to Dr. Dennison’s public commentary. At the very least, this weblog should be removed from the University’s website.

Thank you for your consideration of my request.

The link to Dr. Dennison’s weblog is pasted below:

http://ian.umces.edu/blog/2014/12/25/how-big-chicken-stole-chesapeake-bay/

Dr. Dennison’s blog came to my attention from an editorial published in the January 13, 2015 edition of The Delmarva Farmer newspaper. The link to that editorial is posted below:

http://americanfarm.com/publications/the-delmarva-farmer/2066-um-website-not-appropriate-forum-editorial

SFD Calls For Service 1-15-15

  • Thursday January, 15 2015 @ 23:53Nature: Medical EmergencyCity:Salisbury
  • Thursday January, 15 2015 @ 23:39Nature: Medical EmergencyCity:Salisbury
  • Thursday January, 15 2015 @ 22:13Nature: Medical EmergencyCity:Salisbury
  • Thursday January, 15 2015 @ 20:21Nature: Medical EmergencyCity:Salisbury
  • Thursday January, 15 2015 @ 19:13Nature: Medical EmergencyCity:Salisbury

Teenager Killed For Supposed 'Racist Dancing'

A 17-year-old was killed after a fight broke out because an Asian boy thought he was mocking his ethnicity by copying dance moves from the chart topping track ‘Gangnam Style’, a court has heard.

Jordan Brennan started doing the distinctive dance move when he was confronted by a fellow shopper who thought his moves were racist, the Daily Mail reports.

CCTV footage of the incident shows the teenager starting to dance after entering a corner shop in ‘high spirits’ and only 17 seconds later being confronted by his attacker.

A court heard that a struggle broke out between the two teenage boys after the defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, demanded Jordan apologise after bumping into him.

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No Sir, You Didn't Send My Wife A Birthday Card

From Barack Obama democraticparty@democrats.org
To Joe Albero alberobutzo@wmconnect.com
Joe --

While I'm always grateful to be your President, there's another title that I'm honored to go by: Michelle's husband.

The First Lady is one of the smartest, kindest women I've ever met, Joe. She's also got a birthday coming up.

The Democratic Party is putting together a card for her, and I know Michelle would love it if you'd sign it to wish her a happy birthday:

Thanks, Joe.

Barack Obama

Another Comment Worthy Of A Post

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post " Superintendent of Schools Dr. John Fredericksen Up...":

If there are no problems Dr. Fredericksen then release the findings of your construction inspections and reports you have received concerning these 'allegations. To take you on your word for it is a bit like 'if you like your doctor...'. Provide proof all is well at the construction site!

On his way out of office, O'Malley announces teaching plans at Johns Hopkins

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Outgoing Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley will join the Johns Hopkins University business school as a visiting faculty member.

O'Malley leaves office Wednesday after two four-year terms. He is considering seeking the Democratic nomination for president in 2016.

The governor announced his teaching plans Friday in a tweet that linked to a university news release.

The university says O'Malley will focus on government, business, and urban issues. He'll take part in classes on leadership, infrastructure, entrepreneurship and ethics. And he'll work with fellow faculty and students researching management in the government sector. O'Malley joins the faculty Feb. 2.

O'Malley is also a former mayor of Baltimore, where Hopkins is located.

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AMERICA'S MILITARY: A conservative institution's uneasy cultural evolution

In his first term, President Obama oversaw repeal of the controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

Then he broke with one of the military's most deeply rooted traditions and vowed to lift the ban on women serving in combat.

And the commander in chief has aggressively sought to change military culture by cracking down on sexual assault and sexual harassment, problems that for years were underreported or overlooked.

Obama is an unpopular president in the eyes of the men and women in uniform. Yet his two-term administration is etching a deep imprint on the culture inside the armed forces. As commander in chief, he will leave behind a legacy that will shape the Pentagon's personnel policies and the social customs of rank-and-file troops for decades to come.

For Obama's supporters, the cultural changes he's overseeing are on a level with President Truman's 1948 order that desegregated the military and put it at the forefront of the national push for racial equality.

But to his critics, his moves amount to heavy-handed social engineering that erode deep-seated traditions and potentially undermine good order and discipline.

And for the troops in today's career force, the wave of changes to deep-seated policies and attitudes can be jarring.

"It's a very different Army than the one I came in to," said Sgt. 1st Class Eric Rexilius, who joined the Army 21 years ago and is now a helicopter repairman at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state.

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Diminished in Congress and many states, Dems weigh future

Republicans will hold 31 governorships, and more state legislative seats than they've had since 1928

Congressional Democrats are in retreat in more ways than one this week.

As Democratic senators gather in Baltimore to talk strategy and lick election wounds, their party faces diminished powers in Congress, GOP dominance in many states and a shrinking pool of potential candidates for future elections.

In the November elections, Democrats lost their eight-year Senate majority, and saw their House numbers fall to the lowest level in seven decades.

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So God Made A Liberal...

State park fees to rise Feb. 15

CAPE HENLOPEN STATE PARK — Now is the time to buy the 2015 state park pass for holders looking to save a little money, because prices are set to increase by Feb. 15.

That’s the message the division is trying to send right now, said Ray Bivens, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control's Division of Parks and Recreation section administrator.

“There’s still time to get this year’s pass at last year’s prices,” he said.

The 2014 prices include a daily entrance fee for residents of Delaware of $3 for an inland park and $4 for an ocean park; for nonresidents it's $6 and $8. An annual pass for state parks is $27 for residents and $54 for nonresidents. An annual surf fishing tag is $65 for residents and $130 for nonresidents.

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Insider Reveals Collapse Timeline

Secret Service dumps four officials after series of security lapses

The US Secret Service will remove four senior officials while another has opted to retire from the agency charged with protecting the president in its latest shake-up after a series of security lapses, an agency official said on Wednesday.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that Acting Director Joseph Clancy ordered the four assistant directors who oversee the agency's missions of protection, investigations, technology and public affairs to leave their jobs.

'Four assistant directors have been notified that they're being assigned to other positions,' the official said.

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22 terror camps verified in U.S.

Groups fly under radar as Congress seems unconcerned

Last week’s brazen attack by a “home-grown” terrorist cell in France that targeted the staff of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has sparked renewed interest in potential cells operating inside the United States.

And there are many.

The FBI is aware of at least 22 paramilitary Islamic communes in the U.S., operated by the shadowy Pakistan-based group Jamaat al-Fuqra and its main U.S. front group, Muslims of the Americas.

With U.S. headquarters in Islamberg, New York, the group headed by Pakistani cleric Sheikh Mubarak Ali Gilani operates communes in mostly remote areas of California, Georgia, South Carolina, New York, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Michigan, Tennessee and other states.

The FBI describes the MOA compound in Texas, called Mahmoudberg, as an enclave and “communal living site.” Located in Brazoria County along County Road 3 near Sweeny, Texas, it was discovered more than 10 years ago by the FBI through a tip from an informant in New York.

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Get Well ... or Get Penalized at Work

Companies in the U.S. are increasingly penalizing workers who decline to join "wellness" programs, embracing an element of President Barack Obama's health care law that has raised questions about fairness in the workplace.

Beginning in 2014, the law known as Obamacare raised the financial incentives that employers are allowed to offer workers for participating in workplace wellness programs and achieving results. The incentives, which big business lobbied for, can be either rewards or penalties - up to 30 percent of health insurance premiums, deductibles, and other costs, and even more if the programs target smoking.

Among the two-thirds of large companies using such incentives to encourage participation, almost a quarter are imposing financial penalties on those who opt-out, according to a survey by the National Business Group on Health and benefits consultant Towers Watson (For graphic see link.reuters.com/byr73w)

For some companies, however, just signing up for a wellness program isn't enough. They're linking financial incentives to specific goals such as losing weight, reducing cholesterol, or keeping blood glucose under control. The number of businesses imposing such outcomes-based wellness plans is expected to double this year to 46 percent, the survey found.

"Wellness-or-else is the trend," said workplace consultant Jon Robison of Salveo Partners.

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"If It’s Not A Hard Asset, It’s No Asset"

There are many people that give you a list of things you should have if something bad suddenly happens. There is nothing wrong with that but many people never give much thought as to why those things are valuable during or after a crisis.

How many times has someone told you to hold physical stock certificates or treasuries in case the banks are shut down or keep your credit card paid up just in case you need to make emergency purchases? I’m guessing not very often. Why is that? In normal times it might be a smart thing to do but in a serious crisis that has the capacity to change society, those things become worthless.

Everyone has read the many stories about what would happen if the power grid were to go down. Basically everything that depends on electricity would stop working and become useless. Well, if the banking system were to shut down because of economic collapse, cyber attack or a grid down scenario, everything connected to the banking system would stop working as well.

If you were holding a credit card, what good would it do when it is issued by a bank and depends on credit created by the bank to work? No bank, no credit, no working card. Having a physical stock certificate in hand might seem smart but once the banking system is shut down, what will you do with that piece of paper? Even if you could find someone to buy it, how will you get paid? If the monetary system has collapsed, what medium will you take payment in? Even if you find a person to buy it, and they give you cash, is that medium of exchange going to be worth anything?

That certificate shows you have ownership in a company but with the monetary system shut down, how much will that company be worth as time goes on? If you have money in retirement accounts, savings accounts or checking accounts and the banks shut down, all you have to prove you have money is a monthly statement. You have nothing. Paper assets only have potential value if normalcy returns to the system following a crisis.

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The Looming "National Nervous Breakdown"

When the citizenry cease to believe the lies, the nation suffers a nervous breakdown.

Last week I used the phrase National Nervous Breakdown without clarifying its meaning. (The War on Our Intuition That Something Is Fundamentally Amiss)

By National Nervous Breakdown I do not mean the breakdown of civil order or the economy; I mean the breakdown of the officially sanctioned narratives that underpin the Status Quo. These Master Narratives legitimize the current arrangement; once they erode or break down, the legitimacy of the Status Quo is lost.

The shell remains in place, but nobody believes the system is a fair, just meritocracy.

Let's consider the erosion or breakdown of these master narratives.

1. No accountability for abuse of power. The core narrative is no one is above the law, which means not only that everyone is supposedly treated equally before the law, but that abuses of power are punished or limited.

Now that police departments are essentially stealing from private citizens without due process via civil forfeiture, it's clear there is no accountability for abuses of power.

This is simply one example of many in which blatant abuse of power is sanctioned by the Status Quo, and there is little recourse for citizens who have been abused unless they are wealthy enough to fund a high-powered legal team.

In effect, our legal system is broken. This mirrors the erosion and breakdown of accountability in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when abuse of power was rampant and there was little recourse for the citizenry.

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White House: Internet Rules to be Implemented Without Congress

Obama says unelected FCC trumps Congress

The White House on Thursday said legislation was not necessary to settle so-called “net neutrality” rules because the Federal Communications Commission had the authority to write them.

Republicans in Congress are trying to drum up support for a bill that would counter the FCC’s upcoming new rules. The Obama administration’s comments, while not entirely rebuffing the legislative effort, could make some Democrats wary of joining it.

“In terms of legislation, we don’t believe it’s necessary given that the FCC has the authorities that it needs under Title II,” a White House official told Reuters. “However, we always remain open to working with anyone who shares the president’s goal of fully preserving a free and open internet now and into the future.”

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Bridge replacement might drive combines to highways

(Jan. 16, 2015) The Nelson Road Bridge, a county-owned wooden bridge, earned an unsatisfactory rating during its annual review by county inspectors and replacement efforts began Jan. 7.

Detours are in effect.

Late last year, the county imposed a weight limit on the three-span bridge to lessen the load before replacement could begin. Then-commissioner Virgil Shockley said it was the only way to get from northern Worcester into southern Delaware with farm equipment without having to use highways.

Farmers tend to avoid highways, Shockley said, to prevent them from being surrounded by irritated motorists.

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2016: Team Hillary: We Want Mitt

Hillary Clinton’s political advisers reportedly would love to face Mitt Romney in a general election.

According to the New York Daily News, Clinton confidantes would rather face Romney than former Florida Governor Jeb Bush because Romney, they believe, is “unlikely to get a second chance from the key swing group of independents who made up their minds about him just two years ago.”

“I hope he is the nominee,” a “longtime Clinton confidant” said of Romney. “We will cream him.”

After failing in two presidential campaigns, Romney has told donors that he is seriously considering a third run.

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Hey, Gas Prices Are Down, Let's Go For Another Cruise

Who wants McDonald's?

Illinois struggling to fire high-paid corrections official with gang ties, criminal past

Illinois officials still want to fire a man with a troubled work history, criminal convictions and a history of street gang affiliations from his $111,432-a-year job in the Illinois system.

But a state arbitrator has ruled Xadrian McCraven deserves his job back. Why he ruled that way remains a bit of a mystery.

Tom Shaer, spokesman for the Illinois Department of Corrections, said the agency couldn't release its copy of the decision because the matter remains under appeal. And Anders Lindall, spokesman for the union representing McCraven did not return repeated phone calls seeking comment.

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John Boehner rips Obama on immigration 'overreach' and says 'he knows the truth'

As House Republicans push a bill this week that funds the Department of Homeland Security while blocking President Barack Obama's dramatic immigration policy shifts, Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that the White House should start listening to Americans' concerns about 'amnesty' run amok.

And in a testy meeting at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, he had a chance to press his case.

Boehner told reporters that during a late-morning meeting with Obama he would 'make it clear to the president that we're listening to the American people. ... We hope he'll start to listen too.'

GOP messaging has become more animated and insistent in the week since they took over both houses of Congress. The speaker cast his party as constitutional defenders on Tuesday and insisted that the White House is playing games.

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This Weekend at Station 7 Restaurant

Friday, January 16th

Smoked Prime Rib - house smoked prime rib with au jus, creamy horseradish and two sides, 19.99!

Entertainment: Live Music by Dust n Bones, upstairs 9pm
Saturday, January 17th
  Ribs & Shrimp - 1/2 rack of ribs and 1/2 pound of steamed shrimp with one side, 18.99

Entertainment - DJ Rusty Griswald, upstairs 9pm

Sunday, January 18th
Delmarva's Best Breakfast!

Served 9am-1pm every Sunday! Brisket & Eggs, Omelets, French Toast, Breakfast Burrito and more! Limited lunch menu and kid's breakfast menu also available!

Who's Going to The Super Bowl This Year? Head upstairs at 3pm for both Championship Games to see who will be battling it out this year! Great food and drink specials!

A Comment Worthy Of A Post 1-16-15

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post " Mr. Ireton: Did Sen. Mikulski Lie About Jobs At Th...":

Dear 12:31 PM:

Outside of Salisbury, the ONLY other source of jobs on the Shore is OC. Problem is that the electorate has openly pledged these jobs to FOREIGN workers. Nothing against that except for their very overt efforts to hire foreign only. Hard to hire local for bus drivers? Just look at their website. The truth is that they want CHEAPER bus drivers from overseas. You can't find a lick of effort on the OC website to hire anyone. The applications are either hidden or reserved for foreign connect labor.

Part of the problem is that OC has hired from neighboring industries such as chicken processing.That would be Mr. Thornes. He and his followers seem to believe that hauling people is the same as hauling chickens. Unfortunately, the bad guys are focused on people, not chickens.

So, as a result, you MAY find yourself boarding an OC bus driven by some 20 year old foreigner with some "stuff" in his backpack. These buses hold 40 people and the driver decides when you can get off emergency or not.

IRS to Obamacare Victims: You're On Your Own, Chumps

The Obama administration’s relentless efforts to punish the American people for defying its wishes continue, as the Internal Revenue Service throws a massive temper tantrum about “budget cuts” and tells terrified Obamacare victims they’re on their own this tax season.

The Associated Press reports:

Filing a federal tax return is about to get more complicated for millions of families because of President Barack Obama’s health law. But they shouldn’t expect much help from the Internal Revenue Service.

Got a question for the IRS? Good luck reaching someone by phone. The tax agency says only half of the 100 million people expected to call this year will be able to reach a person.

Callers who do get through may have to wait on hold for 30 minutes or more to talk to someone who will answer only the simplest questions.

“Taxpayers who need help are not getting it, and tax compliance is likely to suffer over the longer term if these problems are not quickly and decisively addressed,” said a report Wednesday by agency watchdog Nina E. Olson.

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen says budget cuts are forcing the agency to reduce taxpayer services and other functions. The number of audits will decline, technology upgrades will be delayed and the agency might be forced to shut down and furlough workers for two days later this year, Koskinen said.

The IRS will no longer help low-income taxpayers fill out their returns, and tax refunds could be delayed for people who file paper returns.

“It couldn’t be worse timing,” Koskinen said of the budget cuts.

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16th Annual St. Paddy's 5K Run & 2k Walk

 Our On-Line Registration is open and ready for you!

  • Are you a business owner who would like to supply us 
    with a "goody bag" stuffer? Call us at 410-742-0505 
    extension 123. We would need 300 pieces by March 1st.
  • We are also seeking gift certificate donations in the amount of $5, $10 or $15. We can let you know who we 
    have already contacted so we don't duplicate requests. 
    Just give us a call!

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Obama targets oil and gas industry, demands massive reduction in methane emissions

Once again placing himself firmly on the side of environmentalists and opposite the oil and gas industry, President Obama on Wednesday rolled out long-awaited regulations to dramatically cut methane emissions over the next decade.

The move, just days before the State of the Union address, gives a clear indication that Mr. Obama wants to cement his legacy on climate change over the final two years of his presidency. Having already targeted power plants, cars and other sources of pollution, the administration is pushing regulations that will carry serious repercussions for the oil and gas sector, one of the greatest economic success stories of the past 10 years.

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The US Retail Industry is Collapsing: Here's Why You're in Trouble

Shopping malls across America are going to look a whole lot emptier soon. An exodus of giant retailers is beginning with the announcement of hundreds of store closures and thousands of people newly unemployed.

The first of January, I broke with my usual tradition and wrote not about positive resolutions, but about the impending rockslide of the US economy. And “rockslide” is an apt word: as one thing starts rolling down the mountain, it will pick up other things until a veritable avalanche of other businesses and people are affected and rolling pell-mell right alongside.

Last year, we saw announcements of the expected closure of some retail giants. In February of 2013, Michael Snyder wrote on The Economic Collapse Blog that we would see the following:

Best Buy
Forecast store closings: 200 to 250

Sears Holding Corp.
Forecast store closings: Kmart 175 to 225, Sears 100 to 125

J.C. Penney
Forecast store closings: 300 to 350

Office Depot
Forecast store closings: 125 to 150

Barnes & Noble
Forecast store closings: 190 to 240, per company comments

Gamestop
Forecast store closings: 500 to 600

OfficeMax
Forecast store closings: 150 to 175

RadioShack
Forecast store closings: 450 to 550

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White House floats first-ever methane rules for oil and gas industry

The Obama administration said it would propose the first-ever regulations on methane emissions from the oil and gas sector Wednesday with an aim of slashing emissions at least 40 percent compared with 2012 levels by 2025.

The regulations would affect new and modified oil and gas hydraulic fracturing — or fracking — wells, though administration officials said they ultimately will need to address emissions from existing wells to hit the emissions reduction target. The Environmental Protection Agency will formally propose the regulations this summer and finalize them in 2016.

"In the goal that we're setting we are making clear that we need to get reductions from existing sources," Dan Utech, Obama's top climate and energy adviser, said in a media call. He said it was too early to conduct a cost-benefit analysis on the plan.

Environmentalists said regulations were needed to meet President Obama's climate change goal of curbing emissions 26 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. But they pressed the White House to pursue rules for existing sources, noting they're concerned that "fugitive" emissions leaked during fracking and through leaky pipelines would erase the climate benefits of burning natural gas in electricity generation compared with coal.

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ECONOMIC DEATH SPIRAL: MORE AMERICAN BUSINESSES DYING THAN STARTING

In a stunning Tuesday report, Gallup CEO and Chairman Jim Clifton revealed that “for the first time in 35 years, American business deaths now outnumber business births.”

Clifton says for the past six years since 2008, employer business startups have fallen below the business failure rate, spurring what he calls “an underground earthquake” that only stands to worsen as lagging U.S. Census data becomes available.

“Let’s get one thing clear: This economy is never truly coming back unless we reverse the birth and death trends of American businesses,” writes Clifton.

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Maryland man sentenced to 16 years in prison for production of child pornography

BALTIMORE — A Maryland man was sentenced Tuesday to 16 years in federal prison for production of child pornography involving two girls, ages 10 and 12. The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, Maryland State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) and the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Laiton Blake Witkowski, 42, of Stockton, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander to serve a lifetime of supervised release following his prison sentence and register as a sex offender.
According to his plea agreement, on October 8, 2013, Witkowski used a file sharing network which enabled a law enforcement officer to download from Witkowski’s computer. After further investigation, a search warrant was executed at his residence on February 6, 2014. Computers, hard drives, other electronic devices and approximately 455 CDs and DVDs were seized, all containing, or were used to produce and store, child pornography. A computer, eMachine and electronic notebook alone contained 8,000 images and 100 videos of child pornography. The CDs and DVDs also contained thousands of images and videos of child pornography, including images and videos involving prepubescent minors, and depicting sadism, masochism and other violence.
Further analysis revealed that Witkowski had produced images and videos of child pornography of two girls in August and September 2009. The girls were approximately 10 and 12 years old at the time. In some images one victim appears to be sleeping, and in other images, the other victim is using the bathroom, or sitting at a computer with Witkowski standing behind her in sexually explicit poses.
“As today’s sentence again demonstrates, HSI is taking child predators off the Internet and our streets, and putting them in federal prison, putting an end to their perverse behavior that has long-lasting traumatic effects on children,” said William Winter, special agent in charge of HSI Baltimore. “HSI will continue to bring predators to justice and protect our nation’s children.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Judson T. Mihok prosecuted the case.
This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 12,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predatorsmartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.

The original press release from Worcester County can be found HERE