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THOMAS SOWELL: 'EXTORTION' SHOWS NEED TO DISMANTLE PERMANENT POLITICAL CLASS

Many among the intelligentsia prefer to think of special interests as corrupting our dedicated public servants with campaign contributions. But Peter Schweizer's new book, "Extortion," shows what happens as the extorting of tribute by politicians in a position to do a lot of harm to businesses that do not pay them protection money.

Campaign contributions are just one of the things that can be extorted. The number of spouses, children or other relatives or favorites of Congressional incumbents who get high-paying jobs in private businesses regulated by government can hardly be coincidental.

When Al Gore was Vice President during the Clinton administration, he simply phoned various special interests and told them how much he wanted them to contribute.

He did not have to spell out the reasons why they should — or why they had better. They already knew from experience how the game is played.

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Entire Town Comes Together To Give Boy With Cancer An Early Christmas

All Devin Kohlman wants for Christmas this year is ... Christmas. And the entire community of Port Clinton, Ohio, banded together to ensure that the eighth-grader, who has terminal brain cancer, would get his wish. On the day that Kohlman was released from the hospital, his big-hearted neighbors were putting the finishing touches on a massive Christmas display, including a freshly cut and trimmed tree, a gazebo adorned with decorations and a giant star that read "Merry Christmas, Devin." Later that night, as he watched from his mother's window, hundreds of people sang carols and chanted his name. And, of course, Santa Claus made an appearance, rolling into town on his motorcycle (it's still early for the reindeer) and promising Devin that he would "get the moon" this year. "You guys, Santa Claus on a motorcycle got the biggest smile I've seen in a while," Devin's mother, Alexis, shouted to the crowd. Merry Christmas, Devin.

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Vandals Strike Speed Cameras, Sign In Gaithersburg Corridor

Montgomery County police are investigating speed-camera and sign vandalism in a corridor along Quince Orchard Road in Gaithersburg.

Police say the incidents occurred Wednesday night. Three camera lenses -- one owned by the city of Gaithersburg, the other two by the county -- were painted.
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Facebook Photo Shows Another Google Mystery Barge Off The Coast of Maine

On October 27, CNET reported that a similar barge was docked in the San Francisco Bay. “Is it a floating Google data center? A floating Google Glass store? Or something else altogether?” asked Daniel Terdiman, writing for the tech media website. The barge is docked at a former U.S. Navy station on Treasure Island.

On October 26, Tom Bell, writing for the Portland Press Herald, reported “a four-story windowless building” docked in the Portland Harbor. “Its purpose and its owner’s identity have been kept secret.”

Despite a cover story that the barge was some sort of promotional gimmick for Google Glass, the wearable computer with an optical head-mounted display, a Google patent for a water-based data center filed in 2007 reveals a different agenda. The patent was granted in 2009.

Google is linked to the CIA and the national security state through the CIA’s technology research division, In-Q-Tel. In 2005, Google acquired the CIA funded satellite mapping software subsequently named Google Earth.

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Breaking News: Federal Appeals Court Reinstates Most Texas' Abortion Restrictions

A federal appeals court issued a ruling Thursday reinstating most of Texas' controversial new abortions restrictions, just three days after a federal judge ruled they were unconstitutional.

The decision by the panel of judges at the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals means as many as 12 clinics won't be able to perform the procedure starting as soon as Friday.

The panel said the law requiring doctors to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital can take effect while a lawsuit moves forward. The restrictions could take effect Friday.
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The Optical Illusions In This Honda Commercial Are Unbelievable

Judge Dismisses Hundreds Of Tickets Issued By Speeding Cop

SORRENTO, LA (WAFB) - According to District Attorney Ricky Babin, any citations issued by Sorrento Police Officer James Bell before September 10, 2013 have been dismissed.

Officer James Bell issued more than 300 traffic citations between July 1 and September 3, 2013. The dismissal affects all traffic citations since December 2012. The exact number is not known at this time.

Earlier this month, Officer Bell was accused of speeding more than 700 times within a 64-day period.

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The Broadway Bomb

In a yearly event called The Broadway Bomb, thousands of skateboarders shoot down eight miles of Manhattan streets. The authorities are not amused.

America's Hunters

Pretty Amazing!
A blogger added up the deer license sales in just a handful of states and arrived at a striking conclusion:
There were over 600,000 hunters this season in the state of Wisconsin. Allow me to restate that number: 600,000!

Over the last several months, Wisconsin's hunters became the eighth largest army in the world.

(Thats more men under arms than in Iran. More than France and Germany combined.)

These men, deployed to the woods of a single American state, Wisconsin, to hunt with firearms, and NO ONE WAS KILLED.

That number pales in comparison to the 750,000 who hunted the woods of Pennsylvania and Michigan's 700,000 hunters, ALL OF WHOM HAVE RETURNED HOME SAFELY.
Toss in a quarter million hunters in West Virginia and it literally establishes the fact that the hunters of those four states alone would comprise the largest army in the world.
And then add in the total number of hunters in the other 46 states. It's millions more.

The point?

America will forever be safe from foreign invasion with that kind of home-grown firepower!
Hunting... it's not just a way to fill the freezer.

It's a matter of national security.
That's why all enemies, foreign and domestic, want to see us disarmed.
Food for thought, when next we consider gun control.

NSA Infiltrates Links To Yahoo, Google Data Centers Worldwide, Snowden Documents Say

The National Security Agency has secretly broken into the main communications links that connect Yahoo and Google data centers around the world, according to documents obtained from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and interviews with knowledgeable officials.

By tapping those links, the agency has positioned itself to collect at will from hundreds of millions of user accounts, many of them belonging to Americans. The NSA does not keep everything it collects, but it keeps a lot.

According to a top-secret accounting dated Jan. 9, 2013, the NSA’s acquisitions directorate sends millions of records every day from internal Yahoo and Google networks to data warehouses at the agency’s headquarters at Fort Meade, Md. In the preceding 30 days, the report said, field collectors had processed and sent back 181,280,466 new records — including “metadata,” which would indicate who sent or received e-mails and when, as well as content such as text, audio and video. 
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THESE WHITE BOXES HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT ALL OVER THE WORLD MAY BE A U.S. GOVERNMENT SPY TOOL

The German newspaper Der Spiegel over the weekend revealed that not only did the U.S. monitor the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, it also allegedly utilized the American embassy in Berlin as a listening station by means of a windowless structure filled with hi-tech gadgetry on the roof to monitor cellphone and other sensitive communications.

An Israeli intelligence analyst has now discovered similar mysterious white structures positioned on the rooftops of many key American embassies including in Beijing, Moscow, and Tel Aviv and published the photos to support his claims. While the structures appear to have a solid exterior, they are actually permeable by communication signals, according to the German report.

Der Spiegel described attic-like rooms positioned on the roof of the embassy in Berlin from which the CIA and NSA are able to monitor “a large part of cellphone communication” in the epicenter of the German government, calling the operation “a nest of espionage.”
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In The Wake Of Prison Scandal, Legislators Discuss Reforms — Body Scanners, Wiretaps, Polygraphs

Body scanners and phone wiretaps throughout Maryland’s prison system are the latest in a series of legislative proposals being considered by lawmakers trying to eliminate corruption in the state’s correctional facilities.

Other suggestions include polygraph tests for correctional officer applicants and mandatory minimum sentences for convicted contraband smugglers.

In a work session Wednesday, the General Assembly’s commission on prison safety discussed new security measures to respond to the federal indictments of 13 correctional officers at the Baltimore City Detention Center who were accused of being active gang members and bringing dangerous contraband into prisons. The indictments caused a stir when they were released this May, and the Special Joint Commission on Public Safety and Security in State and Local Correctional Facilities was formed to address systemic problems in the prison system.
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$50 Billion In Unfunded State And Local Retirement Benefits, Study Says

The money Maryland’s state and local governments have failed to set aside to fulfill pension promises made to teachers and employees has ballooned to more than $22.5 billion over the past five years, a new report has found.

But the counties that run their own pension systems are in much better shape than the state of Maryland, with the exception of Prince George’s County.

The most under-funded retirement benefits continue to be health insurance for these retirees, which amount to $28 billion for state and local governments. Only a handful of county governments have tried to sock money away.
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Sources: White House Told Insurance Execs To Keep Quiet On Obamacare

(CNN) -- White House officials have pressured insurance industry executives to keep quiet amid mounting criticism over Obamacare's rollout, insurance industry sources told CNN.

Sebelius: 'I apologize, I'm accountable' for Obamacare website flaws

After insurance officials publicly criticized the implementation, White House staffers contacted insurers to express their displeasure, industry insiders said.

Multiple sources declined to speak publicly about the push back because they fear retribution.

But Bob Laszewski, who heads a consulting firm for big insurance companies, did talk on the record.

"The White House is exerting massive pressure on the industry, including the trade associations, to keep quiet," he said.

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Maryland Exchange Informs Man He is Not a Citizen (though his ancestors arrived on the Mayflower)

Brian Shaffer lives in Maryland. He is one of hundreds of thousands who has lost insurance because of the Affordable Care Act. But when Shaffer tried to buy replacement insurance on the Maryland exchange he got a surprise, one which he described as "sheer stupidity."

"I went to the Maryland Exchange, filled out the application, and at the end it told me I wasn't eligible because I was not a U.S. citizen" Shaffer told WJLA-TV.
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Ocean City Celeb 'Rodney' Carries Bride Down The Aisle

Brides don't shrink away from sometimes ridiculous requests when it comes to their wedding day.

One woman decided her big day wouldn't be complete without the help of local celebrity Rodney, who is best known for appearing in ads wearing a lifeguard outfit and whisking people off to Ocean City, Md.

Lauren M. Weiss of Lords Valley, Pa., and Rob J. Semanick of Bethlehem, Pa., were married Oct. 11 at the Dunes Manor Hotel in the beach town. Both became fans of Rodney after seeing billboards on a highway in Harrisburg, Pa.
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WCSO Press Release 10-31-13

Incident: Fugitive

Date of Incident: 30 October 2013

Location: Wicomico County, MD

Suspect: Benjamin Townsend Meintzer,42, Salisbury, MD

Narrative: On 30 October 2013 at 3:30 PM, a deputy arrested Benjamin Townsend as a fugitive from the State of Delaware. Authorities in that state wanted Meintzer in connection with a theft case involving a vulnerable adult.  The deputy transported Meintzer to the Detention Center where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance,the Commissioner detained Meintzer in the Detention Center without bond pending extradition back to Delaware.

Charges: Fugitive from Delaware

Meintzer, Benjamin

Incident: Extradition

Date of Incident: 30 October 2013

Location: Sussex County, DE

Suspect: Christopher Elmer Shaver, 23,Delmar, MD

Narrative: On 30 October 2013 at 1:00 PM, a deputy traveled to Sussex County, DE where authorities had detained Christopher Shaver at the behest of Wicomico County. Shaver was being sought on an arrest warrant that charged him with Assault 2^nd Degree stemming from an incident back in Oct 2012.  Upon return to Wicomico County, the deputy transported Shaver to the Central Booking Unit where he was processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After an initial appearance, the Commissioner initially detained him without bond. After a bond review on 31 October 2013 a bond of $10,000.00 was imposed on Shaver and he was detained in the Detention Center.

Charges: Assault 2^nd Degree (2 counts)

Shaver, Christopher

Incident: Burglary / Assault

Date of Incident: 29 October 2013

Location: 600 block of South Westover Drive, Salisbury, MD

Suspect: 1. Te Shombre Shanice Taylor,21, Salisbury, MD

               2. Tyshika Nicole Stanley, 23,Salisbury, MD

               3. Sarah Harmon, 45, Salisbury,MD

               4. Lamar Darnell Trotter, 26,Salisbury, MD

              

Narrative: On 29 October 2013 at 3:34 PM deputies responded to a reported disturbance at a residence in the 600 block of South Westover Drive in Salisbury. Upon arrival, the deputies located a male subject that had been cut with a knife. During the ensuing investigation, the deputy learned that Lamar Trotter, Tyshika Stanley and Sarah Harmon had come into the residence uninvited to speak to the resident, Te Shombre Taylor about a complaint that Taylor had recently made with law enforcement regarding Trotter.A confrontation broke out during the encounter, during which an allegedly enraged Taylor grabbed a knife from the top of a refrigerator and began swinging it around which resulted in the injury to Trotter.

All four subjects in the case were arrested. Trotter, Stanley and Harmon were arrested for entering the residence of Taylor uninvited while she was arrested for cutting Trotter with the knife.

All four were transported to the Central Booking Unit where they were processed and taken in front of the District Court Commissioner. After their initial appearances, all four were detained on bonds of:

1. Lamar Darnell Trotter, $7,500.00
2. Sarah Harmon, $2,500.00
3. Tyshika Stanley, $3,000.00
4. Te Shombre Taylor, $40,000.00

Charges: Burglary 4^th Degree (Trotter, Harmon, Stanley)

               Assault 1^st Degree(Taylor)

Harmon, Sarah

Stanley, Tyshika

Taylor, TeShombre

Incident: Child Support Warrants

Date of Incident: October 2013

Location: Wicomico County

Narrative: During 26-31 October 2013, deputies from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office arrested the following individuals on Circuit Court Body Attachments that had been issued in connection with Child Support Cases: 

1. Kevin S. Duffy, 34, Princess Anne, MD
2. Travis Sentelle Waters, 32, Salisbury, MD 

All subjects were detained on bond in the Detention Center pending an initial appearance in front of a Circuit Court Judge.

Charges:Child Support Non-Compliance 

Duffy, Kevin

Waters, Travis

Date of Incident: 31 Oct 2013

1.     On 29 Oct 2013 a deputy located Brian Edward Tribeck at a residence in the 20300 block of Nanticoke Road in Salisbury and took him into custody on an open arrest warrant stemming from a CDS Possession case from 2012. Upon presentation to the District Court Commissioner, Tribeck was detained in the Detention Center in lieu of $20,000.00 bond.

2.      On 30 Oct 2013 a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office charged George Franklin Morgan Jr, 32 of Seaford, DE, with the theft of two personal checks from a subject that resided in Willards, MD. Morgan was charged on a Criminal Citation and released pending a future court appearance. Delaware law enforcement is currently investigating the subsequent forgery and cashing of these checks in that state.  

3.      On 30 Oct 2013 a deputy from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office charged a 16 year old male juvenile from Salisbury with theft after the juvenile charged $120.00 worth of video games on his mother’s credit card without permission. The juvenile was released back to the mother pending adjudication by the Department of Juvenile Services.     

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Releasing Authority: Lt. Tim Robinson        Date:  31 October 2013

Feds Paid $252 Billion In Unemployment Benefits During Recession

The federal government has paid out 881 million weekly unemployment benefit checks during the current economic slowdown, totaling $252 billion since 2008, according to a new memo released Wednesday by the House Ways and Means Committee.

During and after recessions, federal taxpayers step in to pick up the tab for long-term unemployment benefits when state benefits expire.

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