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Wednesday, June 28, 2017

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Newsroom Update

06/28/2017 03:35 PM EDT

HIDALGO, Texas—U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations (OFO) at the Hidalgo Port of Entry seized 108.77 pounds worth of alleged cocaine in separate, unrelated incidents. “Our officers continue to uphold the CBP mission by...
06/28/2017 03:10 PM EDT

PHILADELPHIA — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized more than $93,000 from a Qatar-bound family for violating federal currency reporting regulations Tuesday at Philadelphia International Airport. Philadelphia CBP seized $93,393...
06/28/2017 03:08 PM EDT

BALTIMORE – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is extending enrollment center hours during the summer in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh for conditionally-approved applicants to complete interviews for CBP’s widely popular Global Entry...
06/28/2017 02:58 PM EDT

LAREDO, Texas – The first seizure took place on June 23, 2017, after Border Patrol agents seized 1,731.71 pounds of marijuana in Laredo, Texas. Agents at the Border Patrol Checkpoint on Interstate Highway 35 encountered a U-Haul truck at the primary...

OCEAN PINES’ JULY FOURTH FIREWORKS, CARNIVAL CELEBRATION AND FREEDOM 5K

One of Ocean Pines’ most anticipated celebrations will take place on Tuesday, July 4, when residents and guests will gathered to celebrate the nation’s independence.

“Our annual Fourth of July celebration in Ocean Pines has become a hallmark day of events for families, friends and vacationers,” said Ocean Pines Marketing and Public Relations Director Denise Sawyer.

The patriotic celebration starts early at 8 a.m. with the annual Freedom 5K Race along a scenic route around the South Gate Pond, at the Worcester County Veterans Memorial in Ocean Pines. The celebration will then continue at 10 a.m. with Ocean Pines’ annual July Fourth Carnival Celebration, which will happen also at the Worcester County Veterans Memorial in Ocean Pines. The event will feature a DJ, water slides, carnival games, refreshments and more. Waterslide wristbands for unlimited rides will be sold for $6; tickets may be sold for additional games and rides. 


Entertainment will be continuous throughout the day. Local band, Still Rockin’, will perform live at The Cove at Mumford’s in Ocean Pines from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. Tranzfusion will rock the house with an electrifying live musical performance at The Cove at Mumford’s in Ocean Pines from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m. Then First Class, an Eastern Shore-based band, will blaze the evening with a dazzling live performance at 8 p.m. until midnight at The Cove at Mumford’s in Ocean Pines.

Brandon Banks found guilty in Vanderbilt rape trial

A former Vanderbilt University football player has been found guilty of aggravated rape in the 2013 gang rape of an unconscious female student.

After deliberating for 15 hours, a jury found Brandon Banks guilty of two out of seven charges on Friday evening, including one count of aggravated rape and one count of aggravated sexual battery.

The 23-year-old was found not guilty on five other counts.

Banks now faces up to 15 years in prison for the aggravated rape charge alone. He will be sentenced on August 18. He was emotionless as the verdict was delivered and was taken into custody immediately after.

He was one of four ex-players charged with assaulting the 21-year-old woman in a dorm room at the university in Nashville, Tennessee four years ago.

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DEA Releases 2017 Drugs of Abuse Resource Guide


(Washington, D.C.) – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration today released the 2017 edition ofDrugs of Abuse, A DEA Resource Guide.

The Drugs of Abuse guide is released on a periodic basis and designed to be a reliable resource on the most commonly abused and misused drugs in the United States. The guide provides important science-based information about the harms and consequences of drug use, describing a drug’s effects on the body and mind, overdose potential, origin, legal status, and other key factors. The 2017 edition updates the 2015 Drugs of Abuse publication with the most current information on new and emerging trends in drug misuse and abuse, including fentanyl, other opioids, and synthetic drugs.

Because education plays a critical role in preventing substance abuse, this comprehensive guide is intended as a tool not just for medical practitioners and law enforcement officials, but also for educators, families, and communities. Drugs of Abuse also offers a list of additional drug education and prevention resources, including the DEA websites: www.DEA.gov, www.getsmartaboutdrugs.comfor parents, www.justthinktwice.com for teens, and www.operationprevention.com for teachers.


For more information and to view the 2017 Drugs of Abuse resource guide, visit https://go.usa.gov/xN7Qm.

Trump Defies Globalists, Calls for US Dominance in Energy

President Trump has openly defied a technocratic plan by the globalists to shut down US energy independence.

In a reversal of Obama administration policies that suspended domestic energy production, particularly coal, Mr. Trump wants the US to once again become a net exporter of energy.

“The fact that we’re no longer in the age of energy scarcity – that we’re in the age of energy abundance – positions the United States in a totally different place,” said Dave Banks, a Trump energy advisor. “This gives access to affordable, reliable energy in the United States, and gives the U.S. a major competitive advantage.”

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Breaking News: A top adviser to Pope Francis, Cardinal George Pell, has been charged with sexual assault in Australia, where he is the senior prelate

Australia’s senior Roman Catholic prelate, and one of Pope Francis’ top advisers, has been charged with sexual assault, the police in the Australian state of Victoria said on Thursday.

The prelate, Cardinal George Pell, became the highest-ranking Vatican official in recent years to face criminal charges involving accusations of sexual offenses.

Tooth found in Lyon sisters search disappears before Welch murder trial

WASHINGTON – A key piece of physical evidence that helped prosecutors charge Lloyd Lee Welch with murder for the deaths of Sheila and Katherine Lyon has been lost by the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office, WTOP has learned.

A tooth recovered during searches in recent years on Taylor’s Mountain, in remote Thaxton, Virginia – where investigators believe Welch burned the bodies of the 12- and 10-year-old girls in 1975 – disappeared before it could be forensically tested to see if it belonged to one of the Lyon sisters.

The tooth was in the custody of the sheriff’s department.

Contacted by WTOP, a spokesperson with the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office declined to address how the tooth disappeared.

According to court records, the tooth was a key piece of physical evidence prosecutors had at their disposal as they attempt to prove that Welch killed the girls.

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Canary In The Coal Mine: Unfunded Liabilities Have Turned Illinois Into A "Banana Republic"

The state is buried debt, and hasn’t passed a budget in over 700 days. 100% of their monthly revenue is being consumed by court ordered payments, and the Illinois Department of Transportation has revealed that they may not be able to pay contractors (who are working on over 700 infrastructure projects) after July 1st if the state doesn’t pass a budget. To top it all off, the state’s credit rating is one step away from junk status, the lowest of any state. Because of these factors, Illinois may become the first state to declare bankruptcy since the Great Depression.

Governor Bruce Rauner has gone so far as to call his state a “banana republic.”

The state’s comptroller has admitted that “We are in massive crisis mode.”

And a reporter for the Chicago Tribune thinks Illinois has gone so far past the point of no return, that the state should be broken up. He recently wrote what basically sounds like a suicide note for Illinois.

Dissolve Illinois. Decommission the state, tear up the charter, whatever the legal mumbo-jumbo, just end the whole dang thing.

We just disappear. With no pain. That’s right. You heard me.

The best thing to do is to break Illinois into pieces right now. Just wipe us off the map. Cut us out of America’s heartland and let neighboring states carve us up and take the best chunks for themselves.

The group that will scream the loudest is the state’s political class, who did this to us, and the big bond creditors, who are whispering talk of bankruptcy and asset forfeiture to save their own skins.

But our beloved Illinois has proved that it just doesn’t deserve to survive.

So how did it get to this point?

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This is what Antifa group is doing now to combat ‘increasingly violent’ Trump America

A Chicago Antifa group named “Haymaker” recently crowdfunded a startup for a “self-defense” training gym and this week, the group got their gym on its feet.

Sort of.

The Indiegogo fundraiser asked for a “flexible” amount of donations totaling $50k, but ultimately fell about $44k short of their ambitious goal.

The “gym’s” description reads:

“In the wake of the election of Donald Trump and the emboldened far right, Haymaker: Popular Fitness & Self-Defense is bringing free martial arts training to Chicago for anyone who wants to learn self-defense. We are a new type of fitness center, based upon the principles of autonomy, strength, and solidarity.”
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Dallas cop get assault charge for killing pregnant woman

A grand jury has recommended an aggravated assault charge against a Dallas police officer who shot and killed a pregnant woman in a January confrontation involving a stolen car.

The Dallas County district attorney announced Friday that Dallas Police Officer Christopher Hess was indicted on the charge of aggravated assault in the shooting death of a pregnant 21-year-old Genevive Dawes.

Hess shot and killed a pregnant Dawes in a January confrontation involving a stolen car. It is the first time in 43 years that a Dallas Police officer has been indicted for an officer-involved shooting that resulted in death.

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DC, Baltimore drivers among the worst in the country

WASHINGTON — Drivers in the D.C. metro area are among the worst in the nation, according to insurance claims tracked by Allstate.

The safest drivers are in Kansas City, Kansas.

Allstate crunched data including average years between collisions and collision likelihood compared to the national average. It found the average driver in the U.S. will experience one collision every 10 years.

In Kansas City, drivers go an average of 14.9 years between collisions and are 32.8 percent less likely to get into a wreck compared to the national average.

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Former Fed Governor: "The Fed Isn't As Independent As Many Think"

With every passing day, the Fed is slowly losing the game, a point made earlier today by SocGen's Albert Edwards who wrotes that "Citizens Will Soon Turn Their Rage Towards Central Bankers."

And it is not just skeptical pundits, and former (and in some cases current) Fed presidents admitting central banks are increasingly powerless to boost the global economy and control inflation (or the Phillips curve) even if they still have sway over capital markets. What is far more insidious to the Fed's waning credibility is when former economists affiliated with the Fed start repeating mantras that until recently were only a prominent feature in the so-called fringe media.

This is what happened last April, when former central bank staffer and Dartmouth College economics professor Andrew Levin, special adviser to then Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke between 2010 to 2012, made the whocking announcement that "A lot of people would be stunned to know” the extent to which the Federal Reserve is privately owned. The Fed “should be a fully public institution just like every other central bank” he added during a call seeking to make the Fed more transparent and accountable to the public.

Why was that stunning? Because it has long been a bone of contention if only among the fringe media, that at its core the Fed is merely a private institution, beholden only to its de facto owners: not the people of the U.S. but to a small cabal of banks. Worse, the actual org chart of who owns what is not disclosed, even as the vast majority of the U.S. population remains deluded that the Fed is a publicly owned institution.

At its core, the question goes to Fed independence: something which the Federal Reserve has long claimed to be, yet an assumption which increasingly more are starting to question even in polite, establishment society.

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"We Can't Keep Losing Races" House Dems Meet To Plot Ouster Of Nancy Pelosi

Calls for the ouster of Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are growing louder heading into the weekend as the blame for the Democrats’ 0-5 showing in a series of special house elections held this week has fallen squarely on her shoulders. While Pelosi has faced down previous threats, the present controversy looks like it’s snowballing into the biggest threat to her dominance during her 10-year reign as the party’s leader in the House.

Indeed, Pelosi's ouster is looking increasingly probable as more of the rank-and-file turn against her. And as the latest report from the Associated Press confirms, a group of a dozen house Democrats met in the office of New York Rep Kathleen Rice on Thursday to try and figure out a way to remove Pelosi from her leadership position. While it looks as if Pelosi's opponents are growing more emboldened, they're still struggling with one important problem…they still need to find a way to execute their coup and force Pelosi from her position. The AP's story relies heavily on quotes from New York Rep Kathleen Rice and Ohio’s Tim Ryan, who are already jockeying for positions in the next iteration of the Democratic Party's leadership.

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JUST IN: Coast Guard, good Samaritan rescue 3 off Ocean City, Md.

BALTIMORE — The Coast Guard and a good Samaritan rescued three people from a boat taking on water approximately 40 miles off Ocean City Wednesday.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Station Ocean City received a report from the owner of a 27-foot boat stating the vessel had taken a wave over the stern and began taking on water.

Coast Guard Sector Maryland-National Capital Region watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast and launched a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew from Station Ocean City, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City, New Jersey, and diverted Coast Guard Cutter Lawrence Lawson to respond.

A good Samaritan arrived on scene and took all three boaters aboard his vessel.

A boatcrew from the Lawrence Lawson passed a dewatering pump to the boaters. Members from both Station Ocean City and the Lawrence Lawson helped dewater the vessel.

The three boaters were taken to Ocean City by the good Samaritan while the 47-foot MLB crew towed the vessel to the west Ocean City boat ramp.

No injuries were reported.

Man charged with abduction at Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in 2015 pleads guilty

A man captured on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel after he kidnapped his former girlfriend at gunpoint pleaded guilty Tuesday to abduction and firearm charges.

In exchange, prosecutors agreed to seek a sentence of no more than five years for 23-year-old Phillip James Timmons, according to a plea agreement entered in the case. Timmons, of Delmar, Md., has been held without bond since his arrest on Oct. 4, 2015.

According to a stipulation of facts submitted by prosecutors, Timmons broke into his former girlfriend’s home in Maryland at about 2 a.m. and abducted her after she repeatedly told him not to come over.

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Gallup Poll: Hillary's High Unfavorability

Losing presidential candidates over the past quarter century have tended to become more popular in the months following the election. But former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has broken that trend, according to Gallup.

The latest Gallup poll reveals that a majority of Americans, 57 percent, continue to view Secretary Clinton unfavorably. There has been no change in this percentage since January 2017.

Clinton’s favorable rating hit an all-time low, 38 percent, early September last year. The highest it has ever been was 67 percent, which was in 1998 when she was first lady.

In 2011 and 2012, during her time serving as secretary of state, she received a 66 percent favorability rating.

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Two House Democrats and a Staffer Under Review By House Ethics Committee

Two Democratic members of the House of Representatives are under review by the House Ethics Committee for alleged wrongdoing.

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan (D., N.M.) and Rep. John Conyers (D., Mich.) are both being reviewed by the committee for different issues, Politico reports.

Lujan is being investigated in connection with the Democratic sit-in on the House floor a year ago. Lujan is being accused of having his campaign profit off the protest by using images of himself on the floor in campaign donation solicitations. Using any image of a member on the House floor for campaign purposes is illegal.

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Maxine Waters Under Siege: Congresswoman lives in $4.8M mansion, Paid daughter $750,000 to mail campaign flyers

California Congresswoman Maxine Waters has incurred the wrath of President Trump supporters. The fiery 78-year-old Democrat was heckled by several protesters at a town hall meeting in Inglewood, Calif. on Saturday.

Waters’ popularity has surged among left-leaning celebrities and Hillary Clinton supporters.

The protesters were escorted out of the meeting by police officers, while more protesters picketed outside Inglewood high school where the town hall meeting was held.

Waters, who for months has called for Trump’s impeachment, is now under threat of Impeachment herself, thanks to her anti-Trump stance.

Pro-Trump supporters are calling for Waters to be impeached amid allegations that she paid her daughter, Karen Waters, $750,000 out of taxpayer funds to mail campaign flyers.

In 2010, the House Ethics Committee investigated Waters for steering $12 million in bailout funds to a bank where her husband sat on the board and held stock.

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Katherine Dettwyler on Ratemyprofessors.com

Dettwyler is very hard for an intro class. I recommend not taking her for anything. Her tests are solely based off her textbook, and there are so many little details that you need to know from the textbook. I don't think ive studied for an exam more and I got an 81. Don't take this class, there are no notes or references online either.

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Report: Suspect in teen murder near Va. mosque was in MS-13, attacked woman week before

HERNDON, Va. (ABC7) — Sources have confirmed to ABC7 News the details of a Washington Post report that states the man who police say abducted and killed a teen near a mosque in Herndon earlier this month allegedly attacked a different woman and sent her to a hospital just one week earlier. That woman reportedly told authorities the man who attacked her was in MS-13.

Shortly after Nabra Mohmod Hassanen was found dead on Sunday, June 18, police in the area noticed a car driving suspiciously and began a traffic stop on Darwin Martinez Torres, 22, of Sterling. He was taken into custody as a suspect, and later charged with murder.

Just one week before the murder, sources confirm to ABC7 News that a woman said she was sexually assaulted and choked by a man who was later identified as Martinez Torres.

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Riddle Me This 6-28-17

 

Answer will be given at 6:30pm

Justice Department IG said to be probing Loretta Lynch

The Justice Department's office of inspector general is said to be probing former Attorney General Loretta Lynch's role in the FBI's investigation of Hillary Clinton's handling of emails as Secretary of State.

The DoJ watchdog's probe was revealed Saturday by House oversight committee chairman Jason Chaffetz in an interview with Fox & Friends, and joins a Senate Judiciary Committee inquiry into Lynch.

Chaffetz, a Republican representative from Utah, said DoJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz 'has been diving into this' and is expected to release a report on Lynch's oversight of the now-closed FBI investigations in 'the first part of next year.'

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Man floating in Pocomoke River identified

On Monday the body of an adult African American male was located deceased floating in the Pocomoke River just south of Snow Hill. The body was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for an autopsy. Finger prints were obtained and sent out for identification. The Subject was identified as James Showell, 64 years of age, of Snow Hill Md.

The investigation into his death is ongoing. Anyone with information regarding Mr. Showell should contact the Worcester County Bureau of Investigation at 410-632-1112.

Governor Larry Hogan Delivers Keynote Address at Maryland Municipal League Summer Conference

Announces Executive Orders to Provide High-Speed Internet to Rural Maryland, Streamline Regulations

ANNAPOLIS, MD –
Governor Larry Hogan today delivered the keynote address at the 2017 Maryland Municipal League (MML) summer conference in Ocean City, Md. In his remarks, the governor highlighted the administration’s efforts to spur economic development and job creation, improve infrastructure, and tackle the state’s evolving heroin and opioid crisis. In addition, the governor announced two new Executive Orders; one to create an Office of Rural Broadband and another to streamline and reform waste regulations.

“A little over two and a half and a half years ago, I stood on the steps of our historic state house in Annapolis and promised to put our state on a new path. We said that we were going to grow our private sector, put more people to work, and turn our economy around – and we have been doing exactly what we said we would do,” said Governor Hogan. “Today our state economy is stronger than it has been in more than a decade, and the Maryland Municipal League has been a great partner in that progress.”

Since the governor took office in 2015, Maryland’s unemployment rate has dropped from 5.4 percent to 4.2 percent, and the state has created nearly 100,000 jobs. The governor discussed his jobs initiative, the More Jobs for Marylanders Act, which was passed by the Maryland General Assembly during the 2017 legislative session, which provides tax incentives for manufacturing companies that create jobs in the areas of the state with the highest unemployment, including the Lower Shore.

'Not one refugee will cross the Jordan'

Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett continued to criticize Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman's plans to allow Arab construction in Area C [about 61 percent of the West Bank territory], under full Israeli control, of Judea and Samaria. In an interview with Arutz Sheva, Bennett declared that Israel would not allow one Arab refugee or descendant of refugees to settle in Area C.

Liberman had previously stated that Israel would not accept a single refugee within the the pre-1967 lines. However, he left open the possibility of Arab refugees and their descendants settling in Judea and Samaria as part of a future Palestinian Arab state.

"The idea of ​​importing millions of refugee descendants from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan is a very dangerous idea that will flood Israel with Palestinian refugees. It took 40 years for Zionism to bring a demographic majority between the Jordan River and the sea," Bennett said.

"The solution to the descendants of the refugees - and I emphasize that these are the descendants of the refugees and not the refugees themselves - is to settle them in their places of residence," he added.

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Virginia Man Sent to Jail for Registering Dead Individuals to Vote for Democrats in 2016

A Virginia man is heading to prison after he attempted to register deceased and nonexistent individuals to vote for Democrats in the 2016 election.

Andrew Spieles, 21, of Harrisonburg, Va. pled guilty Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia and will serve a prison sentence of 100 to 120 days, CBS affiliate WTVR reported.

Spieles worked for Harrisonburg Votes, an organization affiliated with the Democratic Party, when he attempted to commit voter fraud, according to acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle.

"In July 2016, Spieles' job was to register as many voters as possible and reported to Democratic Campaign headquarters in Harrisonburg," a U.S. Attorney's Office spokesperson said. "In August 2016, Spieles was directed to combine his registration numbers with those of another individual because their respective territories overlapped. After filling out a registration form for a voter, Spieles entered the information into a computer system used by the Virginia Democratic Party to track information such as name, age, address, and political affiliation. Every Thursday an employee/volunteer hand-delivered the paper copies of the registration forms to the Registrar's Office in Harrisonburg."

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Good Samaritan helping lost toddler in Florida gets beat up by parent, Facebook shamed

LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA) — A so-called good Samaritan trying to help a lost toddler got quite the thank you, a beat down and social media shaming.

On Saturday, June 24, the Lakeland Police Department responded to a disturbance at the Southwest Sports Complex.

During a game, a 2-year-old child got separated from her parents.

According to Lakeland police, a citizen who was at the at the game visiting with a few friends noticed the young girl wandering by herself and believed that she was lost. The citizen attempted to ask the girl where her parents were and walked with her in hopes she could point them out. At least one independent witness stated they observed the citizen walking with the child trying to help find her parents.

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Italy Overwhelmed as 13,500 African Migrants Arrive in Past Two Days

Italy’s migrant welcome centers are in a state of “collapse” as huge waves of African migrants take advantage of the temperate climate to make the crossing from Libya to the Italian peninsula.

On Tuesday, 8,500 African migrants are reaching Italian shores aboard 14 different ships, adding to the 5,000 who arrived on Monday. The massive arrivals have led local media as well as politicians to speak of an authentic immigrant “invasion” exceeding the country’s capacity of assimilation.

Officials reported on June 15 that more than 65,000 migrants had arrived since the beginning of the year, but that was prior to the latest influx. Figures for the year now stand at 73,380 migrants into Italy, or a rise of 14.42 percent over the same period in 2016, when then-record arrivals had reached 64,133.

The exodus from Libya to the Italian coast has continuing unabated with no visible action on the part of the Italian government or the European Union to halt it.

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[Does anyone see any women or children in the photo? --Editor]

This is why millennials can’t have nice things (or save any money)

Minor expenses can cause major financial problems.

“Millennials are falling victim to common financial vices, such as spending money in coffee shops,” according to a new study by personal-finance site Bankrate.com. The average millennial dines at a restaurant or buys take-out food five times per week and nearly 30% of this age goup say they buy coffee at least three times per week. More than half of millennials (54%) eat out at least three times a week, compared to roughly one-third of Generation X-ers and baby boomers.

“Often, it’s the minor, habitual expenses, such as take-out and alcohol, that wreak havoc on your budget,” Sarah Berger, a financial analyst at Bankrate, said. “Preparing meals at home and brewing your own coffee can add up to big savings.” Some 59% of all age groups say they don’t purchase any brewed coffee or tea in a typical week and 40% say they buy take-out or dine at a restaurant no more than once per week. But that doesn’t mean they’re all cooking at home.

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Police Seek Man for Using Cell Phone to Look Up a Girl’s Skirt at Target Store

Chesterfield, Virginia, police are looking for a man accused of taking video to look up a woman’s skirt at the local Target retail store.

A female shopper called police after finding that a man was following her around the Westchester Commons Target store. At one point, she said, the man put a cell phone in a basket on the floor and pushed it toward her, according to a report by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

“She soon noticed a shopping basket on the floor near her with a phone in it; the phone’s camera was facing up in an apparent attempt to take photos up her skirt,” a police report said.

The suspect is a white male, about 40 to 45 years old. He stands 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 200 pounds, according to police. He had graying hair and was wearing khaki shorts and a blue T-shirt that said “St. Mary’s College” on it.

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100-year-old crime boss beats the odds, is released from prison

Geriatric gangster John “Sonny’’ Franzese — the oldest guest of the federal prison system — is a free man at the age of 100.

The Colombo family underboss was rolled out of the Federal Medical Center in Massachusetts in a wheelchair Friday and headed to the home of his daughter in Brooklyn, Newsday reported.

At the age of 93, he was sentenced to eight years in prison for shaking down the Hustler and Penthouse strip clubs in Manhattan.

Authorities said at the time the doddering don — whom they believed responsible for the murders of between 50 and 100 people — could be released at the age of 100 if he behaved himself in the lockup.

Assistant US Attorney Cristina Posa doubted Franzese would live that long. She told Judge Brian Cogan, who sentenced him, that “for him to die now as a criminal in jail is not an inappropriate response to the lifestyle he lived.”

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A Viewer Writes: Sneaky Bastards

Notice under the picture it says WATCH: Two men jump from Rt. 90 bridge. I thought they had a video of them jumping. Nope....just some text on a video about it.

Publishers Notes: I wonder where they got the story from in the first place, hint, hint.

State Board of Education votes to launch Prince George's County Public Schools grade-fixing probe

BALTIMORE - The Maryland State Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday to launch a third-party investigation into claims of grade fixing and other fraud in Prince George's County Public Schools.

FOX 5 broke the story that teachers and staff members report being under tremendous pressure to increase the high school graduation rate. Some say they have personally been told make sure grades are changed for failing students. Four Prince George's County school board members contacted Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan to say they have evidence of "widespread systemic corruption” in the school system.

After FOX 5’s report, Hogan called for a thorough, exhaustive investigation.

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Wicomico County Fair Announces 2017 Dates – August 18th-20th at Winterplace Park

The Wicomico Farm & Home Show is proud to announce the 2017 Wicomico County Fair being held August 18th - August 20th at Winterplace Park. Celebrating 81 years of fair traditions, there will be something for everyone at the three-day event presented by Perdue Farms and Pohanka Automotive Group.

The Wicomico County Fair serves to showcase the importance of agriculture on the Eastern Shore in a fun, family-friendly atmosphere. The three-day fair events will include livestock showings, carnival, MD High School Rodeo, educational poultry exhibits, fireworks, antique tractor pulls, giant fry pan, car shows, live entertainment, competitions, rides and amusements, equestrian activities and the Mason-Dixon Deputies sanctioned mounted shooting competition.

2017 marks the 150th anniversary of Wicomico County, and for its sesquicentennial occasion, Wicomico County Parks & Recreation has partnered with the Fair to bring the “Parade of Towns,” which will take place on Saturday at 1:50pm. The County’s municipalities and other regions will represent their areas in the parade. Weekend entertainment sponsored by Wicomico County will include a performance by national country music act Jimmy Charles.

“I am very proud to announce that in our first two years we exceeded all expectations in regards to attendance and programming,” Zach Evans, Wicomico County Fair chair said. “This year, we will continue in our efforts to highlight the lifestyle and culture here on the Lower Eastern Shore, as well as showcasing local products and businesses in Wicomico County. We would also like to thank our numerous partners including but not limited to the Wicomico County Executive’s Office, Wicomico County Council, University of MD Extension, Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce and the City of Salisbury.”

Europe Surrenders to Radical Islam

In spite of three attacks in three months, Britain does not seem to be choosing the path of vigilance and determination. June is not even over but the media barely talk about terrorism any more.

Then, in the early hours of June 19, a man who acted alone drove a van into a crowd of Muslims leaving Finsbury Park Mosque in London: the main "threat" to the British right now was soon presented in several newspapers as "Islamophobia".

Decolonization added the idea that the Europeans had oppressed other peoples and were guilty of crimes they now had to redeem. There was no mention of how, throughout history, recruits to Islam had colonized the great Christian Byzantine Empire, Greece, Sicily, Corsica, North Africa and the Middle East, most of the Balkans and eastern Europe, Hungary, northern Cyprus and Spain.

While most jihadist movements were banned by the British government, more discreet organizations have emerged and demurely sent the same message. The Islamic Forum for Europe, for example, depicts itself as "peaceful", but many of those it invites to speak are anything but that. The Islamic Human Rights Commission uses the language of defending human rights to disseminate violent statements against the Jews and the West.

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Vandals damage 24 headstones at historic Maryland church cemetery


UPPER MARLBORO, Md. - A cemetery at one of the oldest churches in Prince George's County was vandalized over the weekend. Police are asking for the public's help in finding those responsible for toppling about two dozen headstones.

St. Thomas Episcopal Parish in Upper Marlboro is the county's second oldest continously-operating church and cemetery, dating back to the 1800s, and it's on the National Register of Historic Places. Prince George's County Police Chief Hank Stawinski said it's believed the cemetery was vandalized sometime Friday night, and the damage was discovered on Saturday.

In all, 24 headstones were knocked over. Stawinski said police are taking the situation very seriously, and detectives are working around the clock to find the person or people who did it.

"This is our collective heritage, and as I've said before, I'm not from someplace else," Stawinski said. "This is my home. and I take this as a personal affront."

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Foundation’s Board Gave Clintons Lifetime Rule Over $109M Non-Profit

Clinton Foundation officials created lifetime “Category A” positions for the former first family on the controversial non-profit’s board of directors in November 2013 that appear to violate IRS regulations barring individuals from using tax-exempt groups for their private benefit, according to documents reviewed by The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Investigative Group.

The amended bylaws for the foundation’s Articles of Incorporation in the state of Arkansas created the unpaid permanent board positions for former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton, their daughter. Mrs. Clinton resigned from the board in April 2015 in her unsuccessful pursuit of the presidency.

“Category B” directors, who make up the majority of the current 11-member board, serve terms of up to three years, according to the amendment text provided by the foundation to officials in Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

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They’re All Around You: the Mexican Mafia

The Mexican Mafia, or “La EME,” is a U.S.-based gang made up primarily of Mexican-American street gang members. The Mexican Mafia should not be confused with illegal alien drug gangs that originate from Mexico or with the Mexican cartels that use the gang as U.S. foot soldiers. Though it originated as a prison gang, its members and operations have since spilled out into U.S. communities.

The Mexican Mafia was formed in California in 1957 for the purpose of controlling the daily criminal activities within correctional facilities by means of fear, intimidation, and violence, while providing its members protection, prestige, and providing its leadership a steady flow of income.

The Mexican Mafia is a multi-generational gang that recruits its members from traditional Mexican-American barrio street gangs. They primarily recruit the most violent, or those street gang members who have the potential to generate a generous cash flow for Mexican Mafia leadership. This cash flow is usually from the result of criminal activity such as narcotics trafficking, or from being the enforcers for debt collecting, extortion by taxing, or murder-for-hire.

Around 1974, the Mexican Mafia spread to the Arizona State Prison in Florence, Arizona. Over the years, splits occurred within the mafia in Arizona and at the current time it is known as the Arizona Mexican Mafia. In 1984, the Texas version of the Mexican Mafia was founded in San Antonio, Texas;this group is also known as “Mexikanemi” or “La EME.”

Here are five things about the Mexican Mafia that should be understood:

Byron York: On Russia, a senator's deception and a timeline of Trump frustration

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley's accusation that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer lied about President Trump and the Russia investigation — that Schumer said the president was under investigation after he, Schumer, had been specifically told by the FBI that Trump was not — is shedding new light on the events that led to the president's rising frustration over the Russia probe, the FBI, and Democrats who sought to make political hay out of Trump's troubles.

Start in January. As Inauguration Day approached, the Trump-Russia affair dominated media talk. The central question, then as now, was whether Trump or his associates colluded with the Russians to try to influence the 2016 election. And the root of the president's frustration was the same: he had been assured, by the highest levels of law enforcement, that he was not under investigation, while at the same time the impression grew — fed by officials who knew otherwise — that he was under investigation.

On Jan. 6, when Trump was president-elect, FBI Director James Comey met with him to tell him about the so-called Russia dossier, which, among other things, described alleged Trump sexual encounters in a Moscow hotel. (Comey later called the dossier "unverified.") Comey later noted that Trump did not ask whether he, Trump, was being investigated personally, but that Comey, on his own initiative, "offered that assurance."

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Firm Behind Trump Dossier Hired by Planned Parenthood to Smear Videomakers

The shadowy “research” firm that commissioned a dossier on President Donald Trump is the same firm hired by Planned Parenthood to create the narrative that the videos exposing the abortion business’s alleged profiteering from the sales of aborted baby parts were “deceptively edited.”

The website for Fusion GPS provides only two paragraphs about the firm and an email address for further contact:

Fusion GPS is based in Washington, DC and provides premium research, strategic intelligence, and due diligence services to corporations, law firms, and investors worldwide.

We offer a cross-disciplinary approach with expertise in media, politics, regulation, national security, and global markets.

Email: info@fusiongps.com

In the summer of 2015, Center for Medical Progress (CMP) began releasing its undercover videos exposing alleged profiteering on the part of Planned Parenthood and its partners in the biomedical fetal tissue procurement industry. The shocking videos forced America’s largest abortion provider into rapid defense mode, and smearing undercover journalist David Daleiden and his group became a top priority of Planned Parenthood.

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Maryland Divided Part 1: Rural counties hope to gain political clout

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

By J.F. Meils
Capital News Service


In 2009, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley closed the visitor center at the Sideling Hill cut, the symbolic gateway to Western Maryland, as a cost-saving effort.

Some saw the move as personal, or at least confirmation of how the former governor felt about the state’s rural counties.

“We had only two visitor centers that were closed in the entire state under O’Malley,” said William Valentine, an Allegany County commissioner. “It wasn’t too hard to figure out what happened.”

Current Gov. Larry Hogan reopened the Sideling Hill Visitor Center in 2015.


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Gingrich: Congress Should Call on Obama to Testify Under Oath

Monday on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich reacted to host Sean Hannity’s claim that despite President Barack Obama knowing about the potential for Russia interfering in the presidential election as early as August 2016, he took no action because as Hannity put it, “he didn’t want to rock the boat” for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Gingrich responded by saying there was “no question” Congress should call the former president to testify under oath about his handling of potential Russian interference..

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Shaun King Slams Christians Over Immigration Ban, Calls For Ban on White Men

The New York Daily News’ senior justice writer Shaun King blasted Christians Monday for perpetrating white supremacy for their support of President Donald Trump’s immigration halt.

King put out a series of tweets accusing Christians who supported the halt of “fake faith” after the Supreme Court allowed Trump’s immigration ban to go into effect.

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Dallas Zoo's 'breakdancing' gorilla makes a big splash

A gorilla at the Dallas Zoo has a "passion for splashin'," impressing the world with his great dance moves.

Zola, a 14-year-old male Western Iowland gorilla, was caught on camera "breakdancing" in a pool. The ape was doing an enrichment session in the big, blue pool, the zoo's staff said in a post on Tuesday.

Though it's impressive, the staff said Zola's "dancing" is really play behavior. The "dance" moves show that the ape is happy and comfortable in his environment.

"There was no breakdance music playing in the building, we promise," the post read.

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http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/06/23/dallas-zoos-breakdancing-gorilla-makes-big-splash.html

EU fines Google a record $2.7 billion for favoring its own shopping service in search results

BRUSSELS — The European Union’s competition watchdog has slapped a record 2.42 billion euro ($2.72 billion) fine on internet giant Google for breaching antitrust rules with its online shopping service.

European regulators said Tuesday that “Google has abused its market dominance as a search engine by giving an illegal advantage to another Google product, its comparison shopping service.”

It gave the Mountain View, California, company 90 days to stop or face fines of up to 5 percent of the average daily worldwide turnover of parent company Alphabet.

The European Commission, which polices EU competition rules, alleges Google elevates its shopping service even when other options might have better deals.

Google maintains it’s trying to package its search results in a way that makes it easier for consumers to find what they want.

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‘2 potential witnesses’ in DNC-rigging lawsuit ‘both died’

Lawyers fear for safety after Seth Rich murder, break-ins, 'freaky' phone calls

WASHINGTON –
Lawyers and plaintiffs suing the Democratic National Committee for rigging the 2016 presidential election say they’re being harassed with threatening messages and “freaky” encounters and they fear for their safety – particularly in the wake of the mysterious and unsolved murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich – but a federal court has denied their request for protection.

“We filed the motion because we do feel that not only us, but our staff and the plaintiffs, are deserving of a motion,” attorney Elizabeth Beck, who is litigating the case, told WND. “But our court system does not have the resources to do so.”

She continued: “The court, in denying our motion for protection, stated in its order that the federal Marshals Service doesn’t have enough resources to devote that amount of protection.”

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Enjoying regular sex 'can help prevent heart disease' - but there's bad news for women

Sex has been linked to the reduction in mens' homocysteine levels, a harmful chemical found in the blood which can trigger life-threatening cardiac problems

Research found having sex several times a week can slash levels of homocysteine in men, whereas women benefit far less from regular romps.

The harmful chemical is found in the blood and can trigger potentially life-threatening cardiac problems.

It's thought men getting regular sex often have better circulation and healthier blood vessels. This is crucial for preventing a build-up of homocysteine.

But scientists say women benefit much less because sexual arousal is less dependent on having a healthy blood flow, which is a key factor in keeping homocysteine under control.

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Walk Off Notice

 

Saturday, June 24: At approximately 4:15 pm on Saturday June 24, Robert Lee Jefferson walked off from Poplar Hill Pre-Release Unit. Jefferson is a white male, 5’9″ 160 lbs black hair, brown eyes. If you have any information about this incident, please call the police.

Friday, June 16: Brandon Strong walked-off from a job assignment in Phoenix, Md. on June 16. If you have any information about this incident, please call the police.

Two robbers shot dead by home owner in California

Security footage shows the moment two robbers broke into a Brentwood, California home and were shot dead by the owner.

The video, which was released by neighbor Reggie Nichols, shows the two men entering the home on the 200 block of Birch Street a little after 11pm on June 21.

Shortly after entering, flashes of light are seen inside the garage as the homeowner shoots at the two.

The homeowner is then seen chasing the two men outside and shooting at them more.

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Another Bay Diving Incident In OC

The Dispatch
Shawn J. Soper
Managing Editor

 
OCEAN CITY -- Less than a week after a similar incident, a teenager dove head first into the bay at 25th Street on Tuesday afternoon and had to be airlifted to a Baltimore hospital with suspected neck and back trauma.


Around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the Ocean City Police Department and the Ocean City Fire Department responded to the area of 25th Street and the bay for a reported diving incident. 


The investigation revealed as as-yet-unnamed 19-year-old male from West Virginia dove head first into the bay at 25th Street.
Maryland State Police helicopter Trooper 4 responded and transported the victim to a Baltimore area hospital. It is believed the victim suffered a neck or back injury. 


More information will be provided as it becomes available.

Live longer: Secrets of the world’s healthiest village revealed

THEY say a little of what you fancy does you good. But it seems the old adage may be wrong when it comes to living a long and healthy life – unless it’s in strict moderation.

A doctor has revealed the secrets behind the “world’s healthiest village”– and there it all comes down to eating less sugar.

Cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra – who describes himself as a former sugar addict – has spent years studying the reasons behind rocketing rates of heart disease and obesity in Britain.

Key to his research were residents of the village of Pioppi, in southern Italy, where diabetes is unheard of and many live to over the age of 100.

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What running really does to your body

Whether you’re a seasoned marathon runner or a rookie at pounding the pavement, understanding the physiological effects running has on your body is vital.

Here’s a breakdown.

Digestive system

Stomach pain or cramping is a common problem for runners. This is because our body drives blood towards our muscles and away from the gut. As a result, digestion of food begins to slow and is exactly why a big meal before a run is never a good idea.

While it’s essential to fuel your body pre-run, always opt for something small and light like a piece of fruit or sandwich.

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MISSING TEEN • KEY’ASIA CHANEL SMITH • SALISBURY, MARYLAND • 14 YEARS OLD

SALSBURY — The Salisbury Police Department is asking for the local public’s assistance in locating missing 14 year old Key’Asia Chanel Smith out of the Salisbury, Maryland area.

Key’Asia was last seen on June 23, 2017 at approximately 6 am in the area of 1008 Adams Avenue, Salisbury.

She was last seen wearing a black shirt with black pants and teal New Balance shoes. Key’Asia is considered critically missing due to her age only, police said, adding that there appears to be no other suspicious circumstances.

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McCabe's Revenge: Circa Suggests Flynn Investigation Was Launched As Pure Retaliation

Andrew McCabe has long been a controversial figure at the FBI. His position as Deputy Director of the FBI came under intense scrutiny during the Clinton email investigation after it came to light that his wife, Jill McCabe, took nearly $500,000 from Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe to fund her Senate campaign. Of course, Terry McAuliffe is a long-time confidant of the Clinton family and was rumored as a potential running mate for Hillary. But sure, no reason to be wary the McCabe was put in charge of supervising that particular investigation.

But now, at least according to a new report from Circa, McCabe may have other conflicts, including a personal vendetta against former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, that have not yet been disclosed. According to Circa, Flynn apparently enraged McCabe a few years back after he intervened on behalf of an FBI Special Agent, Robyn Gritz, who had accused McCabe and other top FBI officials of sexual discrimination.

The FBI launched a criminal probe against former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn two years after the retired Army general roiled the bureau’s leadership by intervening on behalf of a decorated counterterrorism agent who accused now-Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe and other top officials of sexual discrimination, according to documents and interviews.

Flynn’s intervention on behalf of Supervisory Special Agent Robyn Gritz was highly unusual, and included a letter in 2014 on his official Pentagon stationary, a public interview in 2015 supporting Gritz’s case and an offer to testify on her behalf. His offer put him as a hostile witness in a case against McCabe, who was soaring through the bureau’s leadership ranks.

The FBI sought to block Flynn’s support for the agent, asking a federal administrative law judge in May 2014 to keep Flynn and others from becoming a witness in her Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) case, memos obtained by Circa show. Two years later, the FBI opened its inquiry of Flynn.

The EEOC case, which is still pending, was serious enough to require McCabe to submit to a sworn statement to investigators, the documents show.

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LOCK BROCK UP: Clinton Ally Headed For Jail As IRS Purge Looms

Media Matters founder David Brock has pocketed over $1million in unreported lease income. Trump administration shakeup at IRS could mean jail-time for the top Clinton aide.

It might soon be David Brock’s “time in the barrel,” according to high-level sources at the IRS, who are signaling a massive firing will take place in order to clean house from the Obama-era.

Over the past eight years, the IRS has unfairly targeted conservative groups and individuals while ignoring several glaring omissions on Media Matters tax filings. Media Matters is a “non-profit” group funded by liberal billionaires and special interests.

David Brock, a former conservative who turned his back on the GOP for a hefty payday from the Clinton Crime Cartel, has pocketed $1,052,000.00 from sub-leasing the Media Matters office space since 2010.

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Why do teens keep getting murdered in Richmond?

Inside the gang violence in the city's public housing communities

A Richmond police cruiser bounces down a rutted alley toward a dozen teenagers hanging out behind one of the low, red-brick buildings that make up Mosby Court.

It’s a recent weekday afternoon – one of the first truly hot summer days, and between a double homicide of two teenagers in April, the killing of a Virginia State Police special agent in May and a dozen other shootings and killings, the 450-unit public housing complex has emerged as the symbolic epicenter of a violent year that’s only expected to get worse.

The two officers climb out of their patrol car. They’re interested in the graffiti on the wall behind the kids, where “Kobeworld,” “F--- Barry” and “F--- da road" are spray-painted in crude lettering.

The officers read it as coded references to an ongoing battle between violent elements of Mosby and nearby Creighton Court. The rivalry goes back years, and while the exact numbers are impossible to nail down, police and others attribute a not-insignificant portion of the recent shootings and killings in both neighborhoods to it.

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