An old guy with a chain saw. Click on the "video" link below. Don't try this at home...
Artist at work – If you like to chop down trees you should watch this one.
video
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
The Rand Paul pile-on
If you had any doubts about how seriously some Republicans are taking the notion of a Rand Paul presidency, look at how far they’re going to shut down his views on foreign policy.
In the past three days alone, Texas Gov. Rick Perry used a Washington Post op-ed to warn about the dangers of “isolationism” and describe Paul as “curiously blind” to growing threats in Iraq. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) accused the Kentucky senator on CNN of wanting a “withdrawal to fortress America.” And former Vice President Dick Cheney declared at a POLITICO Playbook luncheon on Monday that “isolationism is crazy,” while his daughter, Liz Cheney, said Paul “leaves something to be desired, in terms of national security policy.”
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In the past three days alone, Texas Gov. Rick Perry used a Washington Post op-ed to warn about the dangers of “isolationism” and describe Paul as “curiously blind” to growing threats in Iraq. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) accused the Kentucky senator on CNN of wanting a “withdrawal to fortress America.” And former Vice President Dick Cheney declared at a POLITICO Playbook luncheon on Monday that “isolationism is crazy,” while his daughter, Liz Cheney, said Paul “leaves something to be desired, in terms of national security policy.”
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Deadline to Sponsor LARGEST Cornhole Tournament on the Shore is Approaching Fast!
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Jubilant Cadista Pharmaceuticals is presenting the first
"Lower Eastern Shore Cornament" to benefit United Way. This CORNHOLE TOURNAMENT will be much more than "healthy" competition among Eastern Shore businesses & organizations, food & drinks, PRIZES & "bragging rights"...it will be a great event to further support your United Way!
CALLING ALL CEO'S!!!
Your company can be one of the inaugural "CORNAMENT" SPONSORS!
GOLD LEVEL SPONSOR- $1500
Personalized Cornhole Set
Registration for 6 Teams
T-shirts
Signage & Significant Media Exposure
Company Logo featured on Event T- Shirt
SILVER LEVEL SPONSOR- $1000
Personalized Cornhole Set
Registration for 3 Teams
T-shirts
Signage & Significant Media Exposure
BRONZE LEVEL SPONSOR- $600
Registration for 3 Teams
T-shirts
Significant Media Exposure
UNABLE TO SPONSOR,YET
WANT TO REGISTER A TEAM
FOR YOUR COMPANY?
Teams of 2 can register for $50
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Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Watch How Jackson Police React When a Man Starts Dismantling a Pro-Life Display: ‘Are You Gonna Allow Someone to Just Walk Away With Our Property?’
A video posted online late last week appears to show police in Jackson, Mississippi stand by as a protester steals multiple signs from a graphic pro-life display.
The footage, uploaded to YouTube by the organization behind the presentation, shows multiple officers appear to ignore complaints from the group as a man takes down their signs. The signs appeared to depict very graphic images showing the aftermath of abortion.
“We got a guy taking our signs and walking with them right now,” an individual can be seen telling officers in the video.
The officer does not appear to respond.
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Tenured Partisans
The promise of employment for life has bred corruption in the civil service and should be eliminated.
Something has gone wrong in our civil service. Consider some recent developments. The IRS was forced to pay the National Organization for Marriage $50,000 for leaking the group’s donor list. Tea-party organizations and donors were much more likely than others to be audited by the IRS. This misbehavior was not the work of a few rogue employees in Cincinnati. In general, the IRS stalled tea-party applications for status as 501(c)(4) groups.
Meanwhile, April Sands, an employee of the FEC, recently pleaded guilty to violating the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from campaigning at the office. Ms. Sands, who worked in the office charged with enforcing our election laws, recently said, “I just don’t understand how anyone but straight white men can vote Republican.” What business does such a person have in that office in the first place? Somehow the FEC managed to wipe her computer clean, weakening the case against her. Perhaps that answers our question. These cases reflect a larger pattern. Our civil service is putting a thumb on the scale of justice.
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Something has gone wrong in our civil service. Consider some recent developments. The IRS was forced to pay the National Organization for Marriage $50,000 for leaking the group’s donor list. Tea-party organizations and donors were much more likely than others to be audited by the IRS. This misbehavior was not the work of a few rogue employees in Cincinnati. In general, the IRS stalled tea-party applications for status as 501(c)(4) groups.
Meanwhile, April Sands, an employee of the FEC, recently pleaded guilty to violating the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from campaigning at the office. Ms. Sands, who worked in the office charged with enforcing our election laws, recently said, “I just don’t understand how anyone but straight white men can vote Republican.” What business does such a person have in that office in the first place? Somehow the FEC managed to wipe her computer clean, weakening the case against her. Perhaps that answers our question. These cases reflect a larger pattern. Our civil service is putting a thumb on the scale of justice.
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Mississippi pension fund heads for final 'Jeopardy'
We’ll take pension reform for a thousand.
Make no mistake, Mississippi is playing “Jeopardy” with its public employee retirement fund.
Failing to take steps toward reform might prove disastrous for retirees who depend on their benefits from the Public Employees’ Retirement System and the state’s budget. Mississippi, it’s becoming apparent, is making promises about its pension fund it surely can’t keep, according to a new study by the Competitive Enterprise Institute,
Let’s make it a true “Double Jeopardy, Alex.”
The state’s unfunded liability with PERS as a percentage of the state’s gross domestic product was third worst behind New Mexico and Illinois, according to the study by Robert Sarvis. The state’s unfunded liability is more than $15 billion, the state’s most recent report — in 2013 — says.
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Make no mistake, Mississippi is playing “Jeopardy” with its public employee retirement fund.
Failing to take steps toward reform might prove disastrous for retirees who depend on their benefits from the Public Employees’ Retirement System and the state’s budget. Mississippi, it’s becoming apparent, is making promises about its pension fund it surely can’t keep, according to a new study by the Competitive Enterprise Institute,
Let’s make it a true “Double Jeopardy, Alex.”
The state’s unfunded liability with PERS as a percentage of the state’s gross domestic product was third worst behind New Mexico and Illinois, according to the study by Robert Sarvis. The state’s unfunded liability is more than $15 billion, the state’s most recent report — in 2013 — says.
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Obama: 'What Exactly Are They Trying To Hide?'
"We have to make sure the truth is out and accountability exists," Obama said Monday from the South Lawn of the White House.
Obama accused the separatists of removing evidence and bodies from the site, actions that he said raise the question of "what exactly are they trying to hide?"
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No Longer Just
In the 1966 film A Man For All Seasons, which depicts Sir Thomas More’s steadfast disapproval of King Henry VIII’s marital infidelities, More stirringly defends the rule of law. Rebutting his son-in-law, who says he would hypothetically “cut down every law in England” to find the devil, More asks, “And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned ’round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat?”
More argues that abandoning equal enforcement of the law imperils all citizens. Unfortunately for today’s United States, this is exactly what John Fund and Hans von Spakovsky say the Department of Justice is doing under Attorney General Eric Holder. To this enterprise, Fund brings tireless reporting, and Spakovsky brings his own experience in the Justice Department (as counsel to the assistant attorney for civil rights) and contacts therein.
Together, they have assembled a brief yet persuasive argument that, as one former career lawyer put it, “Holder is the worst person to hold the position of attorney general since the disgraced John Mitchell, who went to jail as a result of the Watergate scandal.” The authors guide us through Holder’s unique judicial malpractice: his Department’s long Supreme Court losing streak; his convenient memory lapses, lack of knowledge, and outright lies about what he knew and when he knew it; and his becoming the first-ever attorney general to be held in contempt by the House of Representatives.
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More argues that abandoning equal enforcement of the law imperils all citizens. Unfortunately for today’s United States, this is exactly what John Fund and Hans von Spakovsky say the Department of Justice is doing under Attorney General Eric Holder. To this enterprise, Fund brings tireless reporting, and Spakovsky brings his own experience in the Justice Department (as counsel to the assistant attorney for civil rights) and contacts therein.
Together, they have assembled a brief yet persuasive argument that, as one former career lawyer put it, “Holder is the worst person to hold the position of attorney general since the disgraced John Mitchell, who went to jail as a result of the Watergate scandal.” The authors guide us through Holder’s unique judicial malpractice: his Department’s long Supreme Court losing streak; his convenient memory lapses, lack of knowledge, and outright lies about what he knew and when he knew it; and his becoming the first-ever attorney general to be held in contempt by the House of Representatives.
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Goldman Sachs Managing Director Nicholas Valtz Found Dead
Nicholas Valtz, a managing director in cross-asset sales at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) in New York, was found dead yesterday by family members who went searching for him after he didn’t return from a kiteboarding outing.
Valtz, 39, was found in Napeague Harbor near the eastern end of Long Island, according to the East Hampton, New York, police. He was a “novice kiteboarder” and was found floating in the water secured to his kite, police said in a statement released yesterday. Other kite gear was found in a grassy area of the harbor, police said.
“We’re deeply saddened by this tragedy and our thoughts are with Nick’s family,” Michael DuVally, a spokesman for Manhattan-based Goldman Sachs, said in an e-mailed statement.
Valtz, who joined the firm in 2000, was promoted to managing director in 2010. As a cross-asset sales executive, he helped manage orders for trading clients and pitch them products and ideas among different types of securities. His wife, Sashi Valtz, also works at Goldman Sachs as head of global third-party research sales, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Nicholas Andrew Valtz was born in September 1974 and received a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in 1996, according to New York voting records and Harvard’s website. The school lists him as earning letters in fencing for three years.
Police are still investigating the death, according to the statement.
Source
Valtz, 39, was found in Napeague Harbor near the eastern end of Long Island, according to the East Hampton, New York, police. He was a “novice kiteboarder” and was found floating in the water secured to his kite, police said in a statement released yesterday. Other kite gear was found in a grassy area of the harbor, police said.
“We’re deeply saddened by this tragedy and our thoughts are with Nick’s family,” Michael DuVally, a spokesman for Manhattan-based Goldman Sachs, said in an e-mailed statement.
Valtz, who joined the firm in 2000, was promoted to managing director in 2010. As a cross-asset sales executive, he helped manage orders for trading clients and pitch them products and ideas among different types of securities. His wife, Sashi Valtz, also works at Goldman Sachs as head of global third-party research sales, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Nicholas Andrew Valtz was born in September 1974 and received a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in 1996, according to New York voting records and Harvard’s website. The school lists him as earning letters in fencing for three years.
Police are still investigating the death, according to the statement.
Source
Things Get Seriously Tense When Two U.S. Marines Notice Something Is Off About ‘Sergeant Major’
In the video, the Marines are friendly at first as they ask the man where he served as well as other details about his military service. The man identifies himself as a “sergeant major,” a military policeman, and a special forces operator.
However, the Marines grew very suspicious with his answers and eventually called the guy out.
“You know that’s called false valor? It is a federal crime for you to be wearing that uniform,” one of the Marines tells the alleged impersonator.
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Larry Hogan statement on loss of Maryland's Beretta factory jobs to Tennessee
ANNAPOLIS, MD – July 22, 2014 – Gubernatorial candidate Larry Hogan this evening offered the following statement on Beretta’s announced closing of its Accokeek, Md. manufacturing plant.
“I am saddened to learn that the hard working women and men I met at Beretta’s factory in Accokeek in May will now lose their jobs as a direct result of the O’Malley-Brown administration’s high taxes and punitive regulations.
The dedicated workers at Beretta’s Accokeek factory proudly manufactured the primary sidearm carried by our nation’s servicemen and women around the world. The loss of these several hundred jobs will tear through the local community, as millions of dollars in economic activity and tax revenue evaporate and numerous small businesses that supported this factory and its employees also suffer.
Under O’Malley and Brown, Maryland has lost 8,000 businesses and unemployment has nearly doubled. In fact, 26 percent of our manufacturing base, and with it 25,000 jobs, has disappeared; today, Maryland is dead last in the nation in manufacturing. (Bureau of Economic Analysis http://www.nam.org/~/media/6A62983CF6AD4AC09F2648B1007816DB/MFG_employment_20140606.pdf)
Maryland’s working families can’t afford a third term of O’Malley-Brown; it’s time to bring integrity and common sense fiscal restraint to Annapolis so we can restore Maryland’s once strong economy.”
Salisbury Fire Department Invites Public to Annual Open House
“We encourage residents to get an up-close look at their neighborhood fire stations,” says Fire Chief Richard A. Hoppes with the SFD. “We are a staple in the community, and this is a good way to connect City of Salisbury and Wicomico County residents with their local firefighters and emergency medical technicians.”
At the open houses, the public is invited to come out and talk with members of their fire department, meet Sparky the Fire Dog, get a Station Tour, receive a free blood pressure check, face painting, moon bounce, see a fire prevention trailer, and a dunking booth will be on site. Refreshments will be provided by the Ladies Auxiliary at Station 16.
There will be interactive events every hour on the hour from 10am to 4pm including; Auto Rescue, High Rise Demo, Fire Extinguisher class, Rappelling Demo, Cut the Roof, and a Layperson CPR class.
If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer firefighter or EMS associate, stop by and let us know who you are. The public is encouraged to go to the Salisbury Fire Department’s website, www.salisburyfd.com for more information or contact the SFD at 410-548-3120.
Phony IRS Phone Calls to Wicomico Citizens
Today the Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the F.B.I., verified a complaint from a Salisbury, Maryland man that someone had attempted to defraud him during a phone call using a sophisticated phone scam that targets taxpayers throughout the country.
Victims are told that they owe money to the IRS and the debt must be paid promptly through a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. If the victim refuses to cooperate, they are then threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver’s license. In many cases, the caller becomes hostile and insulting. The Salisbury man who complained to the Office of the State’s Attorney was instructed to go to a local drug store and get money orders totaling $1786.24 to pay back income taxes. During monitoring of the call, the target of the scam was cautioned not to tell the drug store that the money orders were for the Internal Revenue Service. The Salisbury man had been called on his cellular telephone and was instructed by the caller to not disconnect from the call before or during his travel to the drug store or else a warrant would be immediately issued for his arrest.
Victims are told that they owe money to the IRS and the debt must be paid promptly through a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. If the victim refuses to cooperate, they are then threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver’s license. In many cases, the caller becomes hostile and insulting. The Salisbury man who complained to the Office of the State’s Attorney was instructed to go to a local drug store and get money orders totaling $1786.24 to pay back income taxes. During monitoring of the call, the target of the scam was cautioned not to tell the drug store that the money orders were for the Internal Revenue Service. The Salisbury man had been called on his cellular telephone and was instructed by the caller to not disconnect from the call before or during his travel to the drug store or else a warrant would be immediately issued for his arrest.
Because of this recent verified attempt to scam a Wicomico County citizen, the State’s Attorney’s Office wanted to remind the public of the warnings issued by the IRS on its website a few years ago relating to this particular fraud scheme. “This scam has hit taxpayers in nearly every state in the country. We want to educate taxpayers so they can help protect themselves. Rest assured, we do not and will not ask for credit card numbers over the phone, nor request a pre-paid debit card or wire transfer,” says IRS Acting Commissioner Danny Werfel. “If someone unexpectedly calls claiming to be from the IRS and threatens police arrest, deportation or license revocation if you don’t pay immediately, that is a sign that it really isn’t the IRS calling.” Werfel noted that the first IRS contact with taxpayers on a tax issue is likely to occur via mail
Other characteristics of this scam include:
· Scammers use fake names and IRS badge numbers. They generally use common names and surnames to identify themselves.
· Scammers may be able to recite the last four digits of a victim’s Social Security Number.
· Scammers spoof the IRS toll-free number on caller ID to make it appear that it’s the IRS calling.
· Scammers sometimes send bogus IRS emails to some victims to support their bogus calls.
· Victims hear background noise of other calls being conducted to mimic a call site.
· After threatening victims with jail time or driver’s license revocation, scammers hang up and others soon call back pretending to be from the local police or DMV, and the caller ID supports their claim.
If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS, here’s what you should do:
· If you know you owe taxes or you think you might owe taxes, call the IRS at 1.800.829.1040. The IRS employees at that line can help you with a payment issue – if there really is such an issue.
· If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to think that you owe any taxes (for example, you’ve never received a bill or the caller made some bogus threats as described above), then call and report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 1.800.366.4484.
· If you’ve been targeted by this scam, you should also contact the Federal Trade Commission and use their “FTC Complaint Assistant” at FTC.gov. Please add "IRS Telephone Scam" to the comments of your complaint.
Taxpayers should be aware that there are other unrelated scams (such as a lottery sweepstakes) and solicitations (such as debt relief) that fraudulently claim to be from the IRS.
The IRS encourages taxpayers to be vigilant against phone and email scams that use the IRS as a lure. The IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This includes any type of electronic communication, such as text messages and social media channels. The IRS also does not ask for PINs, passwords or similar confidential access information for credit card, bank or other financial accounts. Recipients should not open any attachments or click on any links contained in the message. Instead, forward the e-mail to phishing@irs.gov.
More information on how to report phishing scams involving the IRS is available on the genuine IRS website,www.IRS.gov.
More information on how to report phishing scams involving the IRS is available on the genuine IRS website,www.IRS.gov.
MICROSOFT ANNOUNCES 18,000 LAYOFFS - CUTS STAFF BY 14 PERCENT
Politicians on both sides of the pond are not impressed. EU High Commissioner Laszlo Andor, "I deeply regret the significant job losses announced by Microsoft today because of the impact these will have on so many individuals, their families and the local communities they live and work in" and US Senator Jeff Sessions is irked that MSFT is firing thousands of staff yet continues to press for relaxed Visa rules: "That is a significant action. Indeed, Microsoft employs about 125,000 people, and they are laying off 18,000. The company laid off 5,000 in 2009. Yet their founder and former leader, Mr. Gates, says we have to have more and more people come into our country to take those kinds of jobs."
Microsoft's financials look terrific of late. The share price is up 40 percent in nine months, market cap is now $370b, sales are $83b and profits over $22billion - so why all the layoffs?
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