Category: News

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News Politics

Banning Bloomberg

 

So, the Emperor Michael Bloomberg….Ahem, Excuse me, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has developed a habit of wanting to ban…well, most anything  his arrogance can come up with it. He recently sent New Yorkers in a tizzy when he wanted to crack down on those over-sized 32 oz drinks. Maybe he felt they were in direct competition of his over-sized ego?

One will never know.

He has vehemently expressed that banning these 32 oz drinks will help fight obesity. Oh, really? How exactly does this help fight obesity considering the fact I can just run to my local grocery store and buy a 2 liter in a rebellious state of mind?? Or did he  miss the part where many fast food places and restaurants provide free unlimited refills on beverages so that you can drink yourself into a sugary stupor??

If you were truly interested in fighting obesity, how about developing some real plans that could actually work.

For example, our youth is the largest it’s ever been due to the ever increasingly dependence upon video games to fulfill their recreational needs. So, why not try implementing mandatory recess time and Physical Education class in order to help keep our kids active and start a mental trend towards a healthier state of mind and body?

Did you know that too many of New York’s public schools have NO recess or as little as 10 minutes time to run around, play, and burn away some calories? Or that qualified Phys. Ed. teachers are being pulled out of the gym to go teach Social Studies?? Yes, this is really happening in the NY public school system.

Or maybe we can spend some of our taxes on creating more accessible recreational centers that offer plentiful exercise equipment at affordable prices. New York has some, but not quite enough.

Fortunately, someone has finally put Bloomberg at a halt. A New York judge has seen right through this Big Gulp facade and has labeled Bloomberg’s banning desire as arbitrary and capricious and put an end to this silly 32 oz drink ban.

But don’t worry folks, Emperor Bloomberg is going to appeal this judgement and waste more time and money on this frivolous matter instead of dealing with bigger issues that comes with running a major metropolitan city. You know, small things like: crime, economy, hunger and homelessness, and the ever crippling real estate issue.

Bloomberg went so far as to say,

“Anytime you adopt a groundbreaking policy, special interests will sue. That’s America.”

Only in Bloomberg’s world is banning a 32 oz drink a groundbreaking policy.

I just hope the rest of America is paying attention to what’s going on in New York because if the mayor decides to run for Presidency in 2016, we should all be worried at the great lengths and tax payers’ dollars he will spend just to get his way.

For us New Yorkers, we have quickly learned that the tale is indeed true —

Our Emperor has no clothes.

Categories
News Television

Judge Judy Sued? Irony?

Is it ironic that Judge Judy is actually being sued?? 

Probably not, but it does make for a good twist.

It seems Judge Judy Sheidlin is actually caught up in quite the domestic issue here. Apparently, a Judge Judy Show producer, Randy Douthit, gave the judge a steal on some Christofle chinaware. This china must be quite the tableware as it is claimed to be worth over a whopping $500,000. You must be able to see right through yourself when looking at this china.

Randy Douthit’s ex-wife, Patric Jones, is alleging that Judge Judy received the china from Douthit for an exchange of only $50,000 without her knowledge or consent of the trade. And as you’ve probably figured out by now, the divorce was clearly a bitter one since Jones is looking to reclaim what she believes is rightfully hers and hers alone.

To add more to the twist, Patric Jones is also claiming that Douthit agreed to decrease his salary upkeep on the show in order to get a better deal in the divorce settlement. So, even though the divorce has been settled, the war is still brewing.

Judge Judy is of course denying these claims and she’s also denying that this lawsuit even exists,

I have not seen any complaint by the former Mrs. Douthit, however, I don’t owe this lady a cent. And if this 50-year-old woman would spend her time more productively at trying to find a job, instead of abusing the judicial system with frivolous lawsuits, we would all be a lot better off.

Ah, Judge Judy, even outside the courts you still have your sass.

I must say it would be quite interesting to see Judge Judy Sheindlin on the other side of the bench and maybe even get just a little taste of her own medicine.

Categories
cop News

New York Cannibal Cop Found Guilty

A New York police officer was convicted on Tuesday in a bizarre plot to kidnap, torture, kill and eat women, ending a trial whose outcome hinged on the delicate legal distinction between fantasy and reality.

Gilberto Valle

What’s the difference between protected speech (like online fantasies) and threats that warrant legal action?

The trial had drawn widespread attention in part because it involved a police officer’s disturbing behavior, but also because it raised a fundamental question: When does a virtual crime, contemplated in Internet chat rooms, become an actual crime?

There was no evidence that any of the women whom the officer, Gilberto Valle, was accused of plotting to kill were harmed. But prosecutors argued that the officer took actual steps to further his plot, like conducting surveillance of potential victims and researching them in a law enforcement database.

Officer Valle, 28, could be sentenced to life in prison for one count of kidnapping conspiracy.

The trial highlighted some of the darkest corners of the Internet, where fetishists hide behind Web identities like Girlmeat Hunter, which Officer Valle used, and engage in role-playing fantasy about cannibalism and sexual torture.

One of Officer Valle’s lawyers, Julia L. Gatto, called the verdict “devastating” and said the defense did not believe that the government had proved its case.

“This was a thought prosecution,” Ms. Gatto said. “These are thoughts, very ugly thoughts, but we don’t prosecute people for their thoughts. And we’ll continue to appeal and continue to fight for Mr. Valle.”

The verdict came on the 12th day of Officer Valle’s trial in United States District Court in Manhattan. He was also convicted of illegally gaining access to the law enforcement database. He faces up to five years in prison on that count, prosecutors said.

h/t New York Times

Categories
News

Drive-By Shooting In Washington. 13 People Shot – Video

A drive-by shooting early Monday on a D.C. street corner that has been repeatedly touched by violence left 13 people wounded, one of them seriously, police said.The shooting took place on North Capitol Street at New York Avenue in front of Tyler House, a crime-plagued subsidized apartment complex that police said is one reason the neighborhood has struggled with gun violence even as redevelopment in nearby “NoMa,” or north of Massachusetts Avenue, has redefined the area.

Those wounded in the shooting — the youngest of whom was 17 — were struck mostly in the arms and legs, D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier said. Assistant Police Chief Peter Newsham said the seriously injured victim was hit in the back. None of the injuries are considered life-threatening.

Detectives are seeking information about two cars seen driving past Tyler House, an eight-story residence, at the time of the 2:10 a.m. shootings. Investigators were scrambling to interview witnesses and the wounded, who were scattered at three city hospitals. Police posted a video that they said captured a portion of the shootings and showed pedestrians falling into a small heap on the sidewalk.
Categories
News

U.S Military Removes Data About Drone Strikes From Monthly Summeries

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – With debate intensifying in the United States over the use of drone aircraft, the U.S. military said on Sunday that it had removed data about air strikes carried out by unmanned planes in Afghanistan from its monthly air power summaries.

U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Afghanistan war, said in a statement the data had been removed because it was “disproportionately focused” on the use of weapons by the remotely piloted aircraft as it was published only when strikes were carried out – which happened during only 3 percent of sorties. Most missions were for reconnaissance, it said.

U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration has increasingly used drones to target against al Qaeda-linked militants overseas.

Civilian casualties from drone strikes have raised ethical concerns and angered local populations, creating tension between the United States and Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Some U.S. lawmakers have also questioned the legality of targeted killings and whether drones would allow the killing of American citizens inside the United States.

Categories
News

Man Receives $13 Million For Wrongly Spending 13 Years In Jail

Can you even imagine going to jail after being wrongly convicted for something you didn’t do? And then spending 13 long years locked up behind bars while life passes you by… all for something you didn’t do?

Well that is the story of David Ayers of Cleveland Ohio, who in 1999 was convicted of killing 76 year old Dorothy Brown. Brown was found in her Cleveland apartment naked from the waist down, bludgeoned to death.

After spending 13 years in jail, DNA testing done on a pubic hair found in Dorothy Brown’s mouth proved to be from someone other than Ayers. He was released in 2011.

The jury’s verdict on Friday awarded $13.2 million to David Ayers for his pain and suffering.

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News trayvon martin

One Year After Trayvon’s Killing, Life In Sandford Florida Returning To Normal

SANFORD, Florida (AP) — One year after the shooting of an unarmed black teenager thrust this small central Florida city into the national spotlight, life in Sanford is returning to its regular rhythm.

After the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin at the hands of a neighborhood watch leader, civil rights leaders warned that Sanford risked its upscale reputation and could become a 21st century version of civil rights flashpoints like Selma, Alabama.

It seems that Sanford’s reputation has been maintained — at least for now. Downtown is abuzz with the activity of 1st Street shops and restaurants, not the sounds of marching protesters.

Literature lovers peruse Maya Books & Music. Craft beers are poured at The Imperial, a bar that doubles as a furniture store. At Hollerbach’s Willow Tree Cafe, patrons feast on sauerbraten and listen to the house polka band.

But beneath the usual pace of life lurks the memory of what happened a year ago Tuesday in a nearby gated community.

h/t USA Today

Categories
Domestic Policies News Politics

The 5:22 to Sequestration Station

You can change here for Dysfunction Junction, or take the local, making all stops to Interminable Terminal. Have your tickets ready. If you can afford them.

This latest skirmish over the economy and the role of government is highlighting more than just the usual differences between the parties. It’s uncovering the stripped-bare disdain the Republicans have for negotiating with the president and their utter lack of gravity when it comes to exchanging ideas. Yes, the left does not want Obama to back down on anything related to Medicare or Social Security or balancing budget cuts with revenue, but when the other party simply refuses to meet you halfway, they cease to be a responsible partner.

Up to now, the GOP criticism of Obama was that he was playing politics with the sequester, didn’t have a specific plan to confront it, and was only looking to blame the Republicans for their obstinacy. And besides which, some said, the cuts will not be as bad as advertised. In fact, they won’t be bad at all.

Well, here comes the reality. Governors of both parties are getting plenty nervous about the effects the cuts will have on their still-fragile budgets. They won’t bring the government to a standstill, nor will they shut down Washington, which I believe to be the secret Republican fantasy, but they will do something worse. They will be a nuisance and a slow trickle of bad news. They will deny people who need certain services what they need. They might result in layoffs at the state and local levels. In short, they will drain away confidence at a time when we need it to increase. But if that’s what the GOP wants, then they’ll get it.

If government by enforced austerity was a theory, then I could see that implementing it could have some positive attributes. But all we need to do is look at Europe to see the real world application of destructive government pullbacks. It ain’t pretty, and it’s getting worse. So why continue to push it? Because the Republican Party is bent not only on destroying itself, but on sticking with ideology at the expense of common sense. I do not question anyone’s patriotism or call them disloyal in the way that Senator Ted Cruz did to Chuck Hagel, but I do wonder what motivates the right to follow policies that will have such a negative effect on the country.

I suppose that President Obama’s, and the Democrats’, worst nightmare would be that the sequester takes effect and the effect is minimal and possibly positive. That would embolden Republicans to continue to push for even more cuts, though not to the military I’m sure, and would discredit and undercut the left’s economic arguments. I’m not gambling on that outcome. The economy needs more money to circulate and get spent, not less. Exactly the opposite will begin happening on Friday.

All aboard.

Register your comments at www.facebook.com/WhereDemocracyLives and on Twitter @rigrundfest

 

Categories
News

Hotel Guests Drank Water Containing Decomposing Body

LOS ANGELES (AP) — British tourist Michael Baugh and his wife said water had only trickled for days as they brushed their teeth, showered and drank from the taps at the Cecil Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, but they could not have imagined the disturbing reason.

The body of a Canadian woman was later discovered at the bottom of one of four cisterns on the roof of the historic hotel near Skid Row. The tanks provide water for hotel taps and would have been used by guests for washing and drinking.

“The moment we found out, we felt a bit sick to the stomach, quite literally,” Baugh said.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health officials were expected to release the results of tests on the water on Thursday.

When the body was discovered on Tuesday, they issued a do-not-drink order while a lab analyzes the water, said Terrance Powell, a director coordinating the department’s response. The disclosure contradicts a previous police statement that the water had been deemed safe.

Powell said the water was also used for cooking in the hotel; a coffee shop in the hotel would remain closed and has been instructed to sanitize its food equipment before reopening.

Elisa Lam

Powell said the hotel hired a water treatment specialist after the department required it to do so to disinfect its plumbing lines.”Our biggest concern is going to be fecal contamination because of the body in the water,” Powell said. He said the likelihood of contamination is “minimal” given the large amount of water the body was found in, but the department is being extra cautious.

A call to the hotel was not returned.

The remains of Elisa Lam, 21, were found by a maintenance worker at the 600-room hotel that charges $65 a night after guests complained about the low water pressure.

 

 

Categories
News

DEEP IMPACT: Meteoric Rise Of Asteroids in Our Skies

CBS contributor Michio Kaku talks about the Russian and Florida meteors and how the Earth might avoid being struck by the mother-of-all-asteroids.

Categories
News

Why Did So Many Videos Capture The Russian Meteor?…Lawlessness

CBS News’ Terrell Brown reports on why there seemed to have been so many cameras rolling in Russia when last week’s meteorite stuck…dashboard cams!

 

 

Categories
News

Did You Miss The Meteor Sighting Over Florida Last Night?

South Floridians who happened to be looking in the right place at the right time Sunday night saw one spectacular light show – possibly a sporadic meteor.

The Coast Guard began getting flooded with phone calls about 7:30 p.m., with reports of folks seeing flare-like objects from Jacksonville to Key West, according to Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Sabrina Laberdesque.

People called in, describing the flares “as orange or red fireballs in the sky,” Laberdesque said. The display was limited to the sky: No injuries were reported, Laberdesque said.

View more videos at: http://nbcmiami.com.

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