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Monday, December 28, 2015

A Lot Has Changed In 100 Years


Trump: Bill Clinton 'Fair Game' in Presidential Race

Former President Bill Clinton's past with women is "fair game" in this year's race, where his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the Democratic frontrunner, says GOP front-runner Donald Trump.

"I think he is fair game because his presidency was really considered to be very troubled, to put it mildly, because of all the things she's talking to me about," Trump said of Clinton on Sunday morning's "Fox & Friends" on Fox News Channel. "I mean, she's actually mentioning sexism."

The latest feud between Hillary Clinton and Trump came when he used a term some say is a vulgar Yiddish word for a part of the male anatomy to describe her 2008 defeat by President Barack Obama.

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Medical Marijuana's Big Business Lures Ex-law Enforcers

With fewer than 4,000 approved patients, the nascent medical marijuana business in Illinois is off to a slow start. Yet it hasn't kept away a cadre of cannabis entrepreneurs who once relied on guns, badges, tough drug laws and lengthy prison sentences to fight the drug.

While neither state regulators nor the medical marijuana industry track the number of employees who were former law enforcement officials, The Associated Press has identified no fewer than 17 in Illinois, many of whom have outsized influence — from a trustee of the state's chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police to one-time undercover narcotics officers.

"Who better would you want to oversee your compliance than a cop?" said Scott Abbott, a retired Illinois State Police colonel paid to help a company adhere to the state's strict laws and regulations at two dispensaries.

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Boy finds block of wood instead of PlayStation 4 in box under tree

WASHINGTON — There’s nothing like finding everything you wished for under the tree at Christmas.

But one Massachusetts boy who got a present with what he thought was a PlayStation 4 inside, found only a block of wood scrawled with a picture and crude message .

The Target store in Saugus, Mass., where the expensive video game console was purchased, said this happens sometimes on the distribution line.

This was likely little consolation to 9-year-old Scott Lundy, who initially thought that Santa had come though on his Christmas list.

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ATTENTION FRIENDS:
We have just been notified that there is a couple in a black pick up truck riding around the Bishopville area trying to steal dogs. Please keep your dogs in sight and do not leave them outside unattended. Please notify the police immediately if you are to notice anything suspicious.


This truck could be in any town. Stay alert!

Poll: Most Americans Say US Is Losing the War on Terrorism

Most Americans say they are not satisfied with how the war on terror is progressing, a new CNN/ORC poll finds, and more are now saying the terrorists are winning than at any point since the 9/11 attacks.

The poll of 1,018 adults, conducted between Dec. 17-21, found that 75 percent say they're dissatisfied following the terrorist attacks in San Bernardino and Paris, CNN reports, marking a high point of 61 percent in August 2007.

However, fewer than half of Americans, or 40 percent, say the terrorists are winning. But that is still 17 points above the previous high of 23 percent that was recorded in August 2005.

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Poll: Shootings weighed on Americans in 2015

NEW YORK — Mass shootings and attacks weighed heavily on the minds of Americans in 2015, according to a new poll that found most believe this year was worse for the world than last year.

A look at the key findings of The Associated Press-Times Square Alliance poll:

Preoccupied by mass shootings

Americans said the most important events of 2015 were a string of mass shootings, including the attacks in San Bernardino, Calif., and Paris, plus Islamic State group atrocities.

Fifty-seven percent of those polled said this year was worse than the last year for the world as a whole, up from the 38 percent asked that question a year ago. Only 10 percent believe 2015 was a better year than 2014, while 32 percent think there wasn't much difference.

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United Airlines Has A Problem With Breastfeeding Moms

VETERAN’S ORDEAL GOING VIRAL …

Breastfeeding is a very personal thing, and every mom has to decide for herself whether she is going to do it. At this point it’s pretty well established that breastfeeding benefits infants, but it remains a personal choice – and we don’t begrudge mothers who chose not to do it.

One thing we do loathe? Governments and big corporations which demonize breastfeeding – or put roadblocks in the way of mothers who make the choice to breastfeed. Take United Airlines, which did a number on Elisabeth Keturah – a medically retired veteran with a nursing daughter who was traveling to visit her family this holiday season.

Keturah specifically chose United because of its baggage allowances for military personnel, however the airline refused to provide her access to her suitcase during a layover – leaving her without her breast pump for sixteen hours.

That doesn’t sound like a big deal, does it?

No … but if you are a woman who breastfeeds, you know it’s a huge deal. Aside from being incredibly painful, it can lead to an inflammation of the tissue known as mastitis. Which is dangerous.

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Bernie Sanders Posts A Tweet About The Economy That Has A Lot Of People Scratching Their Heads

If there is one thing we have learned about Bernie Sanders it’s that he really, really doesn’t understand basic economics.

Not really a math guy either.

If you don’t believe me then just check his Twitter account.


Yeah, that’s right. Bernie is making a direct comparison between college education and house refinancing and completely not understanding the idea of collateral.

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Columbia House is back and so is Vinyl

Remember Columbia House -- the mail order retailer that sold piles of tapes and records for a penny?

The 60-year-old company may be making a comeback, with a nod to its humble beginnings.

John Lippman, who bought the company out of bankruptcy this month, told the Wall Street Journal he planned to bring Columbia House back to its vinyl roots.

No word yet on whether records will be available for a penny.

On a website labeled Columbia House Record Club, the launch is hinted at with an image of a vinyl record on a turntable and the caption "coming soon." The site adds, "One of the most iconic names in music will return in 2016."

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Law enforcement took more stuff from people than burglars did last year

Here's an interesting factoid about contemporary policing: In 2014, for the first time ever, law enforcement officers took more property from American citizens than burglars did. Martin Armstrong pointed this out at his blog, Armstrong Economics, last week.

Officers can take cash and property from people without convicting or even charging them with a crime — yes, really! — through the highly controversial practice known as civil asset forfeiture. Last year, according to the Institute for Justice, the Treasury and Justice departments deposited more than $5 billion into their respective asset forfeiture funds. That same year, the FBI reports that burglary losses topped out at $3.5 billion.

Armstrong claims that "the police are now taking more assets than the criminals," but this isn't exactly right: The FBI also tracks property losses from larceny and theft, in addition to plain ol' burglary. If you add up all the property stolen in 2014, from burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and other means, you arrive at roughly $12.3 billion, according to the FBI. That's more than double the federal asset forfeiture haul.

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Special Interests...EXPOSED!!!

NYC Will Fine You $250,000 For ‘Misgendering’ A Transsexual

Did you call a transsexual person “he” or “she” when they preferred to be called “zhe?” According to a newly updated anti-discrimination law in New York City, you could be fined an eye-watering $250,000.

In the latest, astonishing act of draconian political correctness, the NYC Commission on Human Rights have updated a law on “Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Expression” to threaten staggering financial penalties against property owners who “misgender” employees or tenants.

Incidents that are deemed “wilful and malicious” will see property owners face up to $250,000 in fines, while standard violations of the law will result in a $125,000 fine. For small business owners, these sums are crippling.

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City Sues Church over Jesus Sign

“Jesus Welcomes You To Hawkins,” reads a church’s sign in the city of Hawkins, Texas. But some atheists don’t appreciate the welcome, so the city is suing the church in order to fend off a lawsuit from the atheists.

Two local funeral homes displayed the “Jesus Welcomes You” sign on a plot of land. In June, the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF)—one of the most militant atheist organizations in America—threatened to sue the city if the sign is not removed. FFRF alleges that the sign is actually on city property, not private property.

The city investigated, and found that the title to the part of the land parcel on which the sign stands is unclear. In 1994, the city abandoned part of the land on this street, which is now held by private owners. But the city now claims that it did not abandon the part of the street where the sign stands, and that there’s a public easement on the land in any event. The description of the land’s dimensions, and the public easement’s dimensions, are in dispute.

More here

‘White Men Must Be Stopped’ Says Salon Magazine

The hostile narrative against white men is being fanned by the influential left-wing news site Salon, which just ran an article titled, “White men must be stopped: The very future of mankind depends on it.”

Salon even added some art to its twitter link to emphasize the color angle in the article by Detroit labor activist Frank Joyce.

White men must be stopped: "The time for replacing white supremacy with new values is now"

— Salon.com (@Salon) December 22, 2015

Originally published on Alternet under the equally racist title “The Future of Life Depends on Bringing the 500-Year Rampage of the White Man to a Halt,” Joyce throws punches wildly, using every bit of guilt inducing mumbo-jumbo he can muster up to make his case that white men are biggest problem facing the planet and it’s the white people reading his article who need to do the “restraining” of white people.

Joyce writers that “there is surely a role whites can play in restraining other whites in this era. Beneath the sound and fury generated by GOP presidential candidates, Fox News, website trolls, police unions and others, white people are becoming aware as never before of past and present racism.”

By the third paragraph of his racist screed, Joyce is blaming a Hispanic Senator and a black doctor for white supremacy:

More here

Czech Leader Calls Migrant Wave in Europe an 'Organized Invasion'

Czech President Milos Zeman, known for his anti-migrant comments, on Saturday called the current wave of refugees to Europe "an organised invasion", and that young men from Syria and Iraq should instead "take up arms" against the Islamic State (IS) group.

"I am profoundly convinced that we are facing an organized invasion and not a spontaneous movement of refugees," said Zeman in his Christmas message to the Czech Republic released Saturday.

He went on to say that compassion was "possible" for refugees who are old or sick and for children, but not for young men who in his view should be back home fighting against jihadists.

"A large majority of the illegal migrants are young men in good health, and single. I wonder why these men are not taking up arms to go fight for the freedom of their countries against the Islamic State," said Zeman, who was elected Czech president in early 2013.

He added that their fleeing their war-torn countries only serves to strengthen the IS group.

More here

Troopers Investigating Suspicious Item

Lewes, DE - The Delaware State Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit has examined and removed the suspicious item from the shopping cart in the Lowes parking lot. The item, which was determined to be a piece of PVC pipe with two end caps, has been determined to be non-explosive. Lowes has been re-opened at this time.

This investigation is still on-going at this time. Further information will be released at the conclusion of the investigation.

Judicial Watch Files for Contempt in Supreme Court against State of Hawaii

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced on Wednesday that it filed a Motion for Civil Contemptagainst the State of Hawaii for its contravention of an injunction in the race-based “Native Hawaiian-only” election.

The civil contempt motion alleges the State of Hawaii circumvented an order from the United States Supreme Court enjoining Hawaii from counting ballots or certifying winners in the election until a review of the case is completed by the Ninth Circuit Court. The Supreme Court filing arises out of a federal lawsuit on behalf of five Hawaiian residents and one Texas resident of Hawaiian descent who oppose the discriminatory election process (Keli’i Akina, et al. v. The State of Hawaii, et al. (No. 1:15-cv-00322)).

On August 28, Judicial Watch sought a preliminary injunction from the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii to stop the vote that had been scheduled for November 2015, arguing that its clients would be denied the right to vote either because of their race or their political views, in direct violation of the U.S. Constitution and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Hawaii’s Act 195 authorizes the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission (NHRC) to create a list of “Native Hawaiians” who would be eligible to elect delegates to a planned constitutional convention that would then prepare “governance documents” for a separate Native Hawaiian entity.

Ultimately, on December 2, the Supreme Court ordered an injunction stopping the race-based election, whichreads:

The application for injunction pending appellate review presented to Justice Kennedy and by him referred to the Court is granted. Respondents are enjoined from counting the ballots cast in, and certifying the winners of, the election described in the application, pending final disposition of the appeal by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Justice Ginsburg, Justice Breyer, Justice Sotomayor, and Justice Kagan would deny the application.

Hawaii violated the injunction on December 15, 2015, when the Na’i Apuni Foundation, a defendant in the case, allegedly acting on behalf of the State Hawaii, announced that all 196 candidates in the now-enjoined election will be seated at a February 1, 2016 constitutional convention to consider whether Native Hawaiians should seek some sort of federal tribal status.

More here

MSP DUI Press Release 12-21 thru 12-27-15 (Berlin Barrack)

Click To enlarge

Troopers Investigating Suspicious Item

Lewes, DE - Delaware State Police are currently investigating the discovery of a suspicious item located in a shopping cart outside of the Lowes located at 20364 Plantations Road, Lewes.

As a result of the investigation, which began around 12:00 p.m., troopers have closed all entrances to the business and patrons inside the store are remaining in place. The Delaware State Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit is responding to the scene at this time.

This investigation is in its early stages. More information will be released as it is provided.

WCSO Press Release 12-28-15

Incident: Vandalism
Date of Incident: 24 December 2015
Location: 1600 block of Waconia Drive, Salisbury, MD
Suspect: Adrienne M. Shockley, 34, Salisbury, MD
Narrative: On 24 December 2015 at 5:47 AM a deputy responded to a residence in the 1600 block of Waconia Drive for a reported burglary. Upon arrival, the deputy discovered Adrienne Shockley inside the residence. During the investigation, the deputy learned that Shockley entered the residence through a rear door and discovered her former boyfriend in bed with another woman. After speaking with the resident of the house, the deputy learned that the resident and Shockley were no longer in a relationship and that Shockley did not have permission to enter
The deputy placed Shockley under arrest and transported her to the Central Booking Unit where she was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner released Shockley on $10,000.00 unsecured bond.
Charges: Burglary 4th Degree



Incident: Vandalism
Date of Incident: 23 December 2015
Location: Chestnut Street and Elm Street, Hebron, MD
Suspect: Norman D. Gaines, 23, Hebron, MD
Narrative: On 23 December 2015 at 6:06 PM a deputy responded to the intersection of Chestnut Street and Elm Street in Hebron for a reported vandalism incident that had just occurred. According to the victim in this incident, a subject later identified as Norman Gaines, had just broken out the driver’s side window of the victim’s vehicle with a baseball bat following an argument. Gaines was soon located by the deputy walking nearby, still carrying the baseball bat.
The deputy placed Gaines under arrest and transported him to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. Following an initial appearance, Gaines was detained in the Detention Center in lieu of $25,000.00 bond.
Charges: Malicious Destruction of Property
Reckless Endangerment

Over 200 Migrants Storm Spain’s Border With Africa

Hundreds of migrants stormed Spain’s border with Morocco at Ceuta early on Christmas Day. Two drowned and over 100 were intercepted, but many more reportedly reached Spanish territory.

The storming of the Spanish border in the north of Ceuta took place in the early hours of Friday morning, with the migrants attempting either to swim to Spanish-claimed territory or climb over a barbed wire fence, reports The Local.

Local authorities say that of the 200 or so migrants who tried to swim from Morocco, two were pulled dead from the waters and another 104 intercepted. Police trying to protect the border against the onslaught themselves sustained injury after coming under fire from stones and sticks thrown by the migrants.

Red Cross volunteers in Ceuta said they were treating 185 migrants who did get into Spanish territory. A dozen of that number were hospitalized for more serious injuries including an open leg fracture, deep cuts, symptoms of drowning, and hypothermia.

Those well enough to avoid hospitalization were equipped by the Red Cross with clothing and shoes, before being taken to a temporary migrant detention center. This follows the normal practice of not sending back those migrants who reach Spanish territory, instead allowing them to submit asylum claims.

More here

That time when Donald Trump saved a Georgia farm

One narrative emerging around the surprisingly resilient Donald Trump portrays the brash billionaire as a final card laid down by Republican blue-collar voters who see their way of life — and their political clout — draining away in a bathtub spiral.

Trump has been a man of last resort before. Right here in Georgia, in fact. And if his Republican presidential machine doesn’t seize upon the tale in the next few weeks, as he and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas battle for Southern votes, then someone in the Trump campaign will be guilty of gross incompetence.

It happened in 1986, in the midst of the worst farm crisis since the Great Depression. In Burke County, on Georgia’s eastern border, farm after farm was folding.

On Feb. 4, Lenard Dozier Hill III, a third-generation occupant of his cotton-and-soybean acreage, was about to have his land sold out from under him. ”That morning, it was going to be auctioned off at the courthouse steps, so he committed suicide,” said Betsy Sharp, his daughter.

In the bedroom of the Hill home, along with the .22-caliber rifle that did the work, was a neat stack of life insurance policies and other papers on the nightstand. Hill had intended for the life insurance payout to cover most of his $300,000 debt and so save the family farm for another generation.

It was a grievous miscalculation. Most, if not all, life insurance policies include a clause that prohibits payment in cases of suicide. “He didn’t realize all that,” Sharp said.

New Year's Eve At Oasis

We will be offering Dinner Specials along with this, and a complimentary Champagne toast at Midnight.

No Dinner Over $15.00! Choice of:

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Filet Tips over Rice

Baked Sole stuffed with Crab Meat & Scallops

All Dinners come with two sides and dinner rolls

In Memory of Harold P. Glick 1941 - 2015

Harold Potts Glick, 74, passed away on December 24, 2015, at his home after a courageous battle with cancer. He was born on November 15, 1941 in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son of the late Saul Glick and Miriam Glick Rubin (nee: Potts). 

Hal grew up in Onancock, on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. His family owned and operated a retail department store, Glick & Sons. Hal was a 1960 graduate of Randolph Macon Military Academy in Front Royal, Virginia and a 1965 graduate of the University of Maryland Business School with a B.S. degree in accounting. He passed the CPA exam in 1966. He decided to use his retail knowledge and experience and opened and operated a fine men's clothing store in Salisbury, Maryland, Mike Hals, LTD, with his brother, Mike in 1967. He opened the first Unisex hair salon, A Cut Above, above the store in 1975.

Hal began to feel he was not achieving his goals, so in 1979, he decided to venture into the real estate business. He sold out the clothing store, obtained his real estate license and joined Bruce Moore and Robert Warfield at Moore & Warfield Real Estate in Ocean City, Maryland, as the 12th sales associate. Hal loved the real estate business and through his successes, he was asked to be a partner in the firm. In 1983, the company became Moore, Warfield & Glick, Inc. Realtors. He loved Ocean City and the business. The agents and staff became his extended family. The company expanded through the years, opening offices in Delaware and Virginia. It became the largest independently owned and operated "resort" real estate company in the area. Hal was very involved with the local and state real estate boards, holding all the elected offices and winning numerous awards. His most treasured was winning "Realtor of the Year" award in 1987 and the "Realtor Community Service" award in 1998. Hal partnered in the development of many condominiums and subdivisions in Ocean City and surrounding areas. In 2003, the company was sold to Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage.

Meadowlark Lemon, legendary Harlem Globetrotter, dead at 83

When Meadow George Lemon walked into the Ritz Theater in Wilmington, N.C., at age 11, he didn’t have much going for him. He was born a second-class citizen in the Jim Crow South. His folks had split up, leaving his aunt and uncle to raise him - a skinny boy with a funny name “not at the top of anyone’s priority list,” as he later wrote. And, for a kid who looked forward to splurging 25 cents on westerns and adventure flicks, there was no clear way out.

Then, in the early 1940s, Lemon saw the newsreel that changed his life.

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Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/nation-world/national/article51848380.html#storylink=cpy

Chick-Fil-A Is Breaking Their Own Rule and Cooking On A Sunday


U.S. Lawmakers Make Stunning Move To Investigate Obama For Helping ISIS

Three committees in the House of Representatives announced Friday that they were launching concurrent investigations into allegations that President Barack Obama deliberately manipulated intelligence reports from Syria and Iraq, allowing the Islamic State group to thrive.

According to the Washington Examiner, Republican Reps. Ken Calvert of California, Mike Pompeo of Kansas and Brad Wenstrup of Ohio will lead the investigations for the Armed Services Committee, Intelligence Committee and the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, respectively.

“In addition to looking into the specific allegations, the Joint Task Force will examine whether these allegations reflect systemic problems across the intelligence enterprise in CENTCOM or any other pertinent intelligence organizations,” read a joint statement from Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Rodney Freylinghuysen, R-N.J.

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Miss Universe Mistake: Is God Testing You, Miss Colombia?

Dear Miss Gutierrez-Arévalo,

Many people have weighed in on the moment you were crowed Ms. Universe, then learned that you were actually the runner-up in the contest. They commiserate with you and imagine how devastated you must have been. They wonder how a person regains her footing after such a shock.

Here is the answer: Faith.

Listening to thousands of life stories during my twenty years as a psychiatrist has convinced me that life events are not as random as they may seem and that opportunities to triumph in the biggest ways often come disguised as defeats, even very painful ones.

The lens that allows one to see this fact is a long one, requiring a person to step back, settle her nerves and look for that special path meant for her—the one that requires not only bravery and ingenuity, but the conviction that human beings are connected to a force greater than themselves that rewards them for passing through the door of adversity with an intention to triumph and achieve good works.

Step back now and let’s take a look through that lens of faith, together, for a few moments.

Caption This Photo 12-28-15


Tom Ridge: 'Pause' Refugees From Middle East

Former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Sunday the United States should put a "pause" on refugees from the Middle East until better screening procedures can be put into place.

"I'm just not sure we've got the background information," Ridge said Sunday on "The Cats Roundtable" on AM 970 in New York.

"They talk about screening. They talk about being able to review everybody in a timely way ... I'm just not confident they have sufficient information for law enforcement, the intelligence community, to do effective screening."

More here

Can We Get An Amen?


Murder, manslaughter charges against police spike after fatal shootings in 2015

More than three times as many police officers are facing murder or manslaughter charges this year for on-duty shootings than in any other year over the past decade, according to a researcher who tracks such incidents.

An average of five police officers annually faced such charges from 2005 through 2014, said Philip Stinson, a Bowling Green State University criminologist who tracks police killings.

But this year alone, at least 16 officers have been charged with either murder or manslaughter in connection with the deaths of 13 people who were killed in on-duty shootings. One officer faced two separate charges for an on-duty and an off-duty shooting.

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WMDT's New Latino Channel


SPD Press Release 12-28-15 (Shoplifting)

Jim Ireton's Solution To Road Repairs


Rep. King Says Terror Threat Coming from Mosques

New York GOP Rep. Peter King on Sunday called again for better surveillance of mosques in the U.S., suggesting Islamic terrorists visit them and said that critics can “cry all they want” about the tactic amounting to a civil liberties violation.

King, a member of the House’s Homeland Security and Select Intelligence committees, told “Fox News Sunday” that “99 percent” of Muslims in the United States are good people and that he’s friends with people of the Islamic faith.

“But the fact is, (mosques are) where the threat is coming from,” King said.

He also argued that some Americans have a “blind political correctness” on such issues and that civil libertarians and other critics of better mosque surveillance can “cry all they want.”

King pointed out that one of the so-called Boston Marathon bombers, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was told to leave a local mosque following two outbursts, yet members declined to warn authorities.

“If they had known that in advance, you combine that with the fact that the Russians had already told us to be on the lookout for him, we could have possible prevented the … bombing,” King said.

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Senior Moments by Golf Brooks

Hagerstown McDonald’s honors its oldest worker in the nation

HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — At 95 years old, when most people are well into their golden years and decades beyond the workforce, Harriett Clopper still drives herself to work to her job at McDonald’s on Sharpsburg Pike in Hagerstown — something she’s been doing for the last 20 years.

Clopper has the distinction of not only being the fast-food restaurant’s oldest employee in the nation, but the most dedicated, at least according to her colleagues.

“If I could get a 1,000 Harrietts, I’d be a happy man,” said Mark Levine, owner and operator of several Hagerstown-area McDonald’s. “She treats the customers better than I treat the customers. She is the nicest greeter and host here. She makes everybody feel right at home.”

To celebrate her 95th birthday and 20 years as a greeter at McDonald’s, Levine hosted a surprise party for his star employee.

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Schools Using Tuition Vouchers See Dramatic Improvement

School choice opponents look for any opportunity to knock down tuition voucher programs. For years, those opportunities have been diminishing, and they just lost another.

"After two years of disappointing results, Louisiana's larger voucher schools are starting to improve," the Times-Picayune reports.

Two-thirds of the private schools that participate in the Louisiana Scholarship Program are meeting or exceeding academic expectations. That's up from less than half last year.

Of the 27 schools that had their scores released, 18 saw improvement from last year.

More here

And That's A Wrap


C-SPAN Accused of ‘Mainstreaming Islamist Organizations While Willfully Marginalizing’ Reformists

The leader of an umbrella group of moderate Islamic organizations is troubled by C-SPAN's decision not to cover its launch event at the National Press Club earlier this month, when on Monday the public affairs network provided live coverage to another Muslim event – highlighting “Islamophobia” – at the same venue.

Attempts to get C-SPAN to cover the launch of the Muslim Reform Movement on December 4 were unsuccessful, said M. Zuhdi Jasser, president of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy and a key figure in the establishment of the MRM.

On Monday, C-SPAN covered a press conference by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its allies in the U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO) at which 2016 political candidates were warned that anti-Muslim sentiment would carry a cost at the ballot box.

Jasser, a Phoenix-Ariz.-based Muslim physician and anti-Islamist activist, called the incident “beyond bizarre if not flagrantly biased.”

“They are mainstreaming Islamist organizations while willfully marginalizing us,” he said. “At least show both!”

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"Afar"


Miller Promises Help For Baltimore City, Scrutiny Of Hogan Tax Cuts

Senate President Mike Miller promises lawmakers will work to approve a number of bills to help Baltimore City in the upcoming legislative session.

In an interview recorded for Sunday's Maryland's News This Week, Miller said there would be bills to address vacant housing, economic development, education funding and police accountability.

Miller and House Speaker Michael Busch had formed a task force to address police accountability in the wake of the death of Freddie Gray.

Miller said he would back legislation to make some changes to the Law Enforcement Officers Bill of Rights. Those changes include reducing the amount of time officers accused of wrongdoing can wait before they cooperate with investigators.

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Eastern Shore Snowman 2015