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Thursday, December 03, 2015

Elf On The Shelf Ideas (Part 2 of 2)



Car Dealers Have Their Way With Congress

With a crush of must-pass bills coming at the end of the year, it’s a lobbyist feeding frenzy on Capitol Hill. The prize: a rider tacked onto one of those bills that’s worth big bucks.

And the biggest winner so far is not the industry you’d normally think of as the most powerful in Washington — not banking, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, or telecommunications. Arguably the most successful group when it comes to building bipartisan coalitions to protect their profits and avoid federal scrutiny is auto dealers.

Last Wednesday, 88 Democrats joined 244 Republicans in the House to advance a bill that amounts to a stand-down order to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. If it becomes law, CFPB will no longer be able to crack down on racial discrimination in auto lending that costs individual African-American and Hispanic consumers hundreds of dollars, while earning dealers hundreds of millions in ill-gotten profits.

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Powellville VFC Bull and Oyster Roast

It's that time again for our Annual Bull and Oyster Roast. We are only selling 250 tickets for each sitting. Make sure you get you tickets early.

Specter of Drones Firing Tear Gas on Crowds Worries Human Rights Group

The tools that governments could use to contain public demonstrations by remote control – firing tear gas from drones, for example – are advancing at a troubling and unregulated rate, says a new report from researchers in the U.K.

These technologies are either fully automatic or semi-automatic, according to the report, and can be used at a distance from the target.

Without further study and regulation, these detached methods of crowd control could lead to serious human rights violations, the report says. “This could include the blanket application of significant quantities of [remote control agents] against large peaceful gatherings or demonstrations resulting in en masse infliction of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

The report, titled “Tear Gassing By Remote Control”, was commissioned by the Remote Control Project, a branch of the Oxford Research Group, a think tank partly focused on modern warfare and its long-term consequences.

Its publication comes as almost 200 member states are meeting in The Hague in the Netherlands at the annual Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Conventions, to discuss the progression of chemical warfare worldwide.

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Five Elementary School Students Arrested Over ‘Legitimate Plan’ to Blow Up High School

Five elementary school students in New Jersey have been arrested after allegedly plotting to blow up a high school.

The five fifth-graders, ages 10 and 11, attend Clifton Elementary School #11 and were targeting a school assembly set to be held at Clifton High School Wednesday, WABC-TV reported.

School officials at the elementary school contacted police after finding notes on how the attack would be carried out.

Authorities said there was vinegar and cinnamon inside the device in question, but nothing to cause an explosion. Regardless, authorities are concerned about the intent. 

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MSP Press Release 12-3-15 (Handgun Seizure)

Larry Hogan Still Riding High In Maryland, Even With Democrats

We all knew Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan had a lot on his plate. Personally, he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in June. Politically, he was a Republican governor in a deep-blue state with an overwhelmingly Democratic legislature. Yet, somehow, he’s managed to draw praise from across the political spectrum in a new Baltimore Sun/University of Baltimore poll, where Marylanders also feel that their state is finally heading in the right direction. A far cry from the numbers seen during the O’Malley administration:
Less than a year into his term, Hogan's approval rating among likely voters has soared to 63 percent and exceeds that of Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, typically the state's most popular politician, the poll found. She is supported by 61 percent of voters.
The governor's popularity is coupled to a dramatic swing in optimism about Maryland's future.
A majority of likely voters — 57 percent — now believe the state is moving in the right direction. It marks what pollster Steve Raabe calls an "enormous" swing in attitudes from the final months of former Gov. Martin O'Malley's tenure, when only 44 percent felt that way.
"You almost never see that sort of shift," said Raabe, president of Annapolis-based OpinionWorks, which conducted the poll. "Everybody, regardless of political stripe, feels like we're moving in the right direction."
[…]
His populist moves, such as lowering tolls on the Bay Bridge, and his relative newness in office have contributed to high approval ratings, Raabe said. Hogan is enjoying "an extended honeymoon," Raabe said, especially among Democrats in state where they outnumber Republicans more than 2-1.
"I'm a strong, dyed-in-the-wool Democrat. And I approve," said Larry Regan, a 61-year-old lawyer from Rockville. "Hogan appears to be taking action. … I like his work on tolls. Boom. Doing something."
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Israel Honors US Soldier Who Protected Jews At Nazi POW Camp

JERUSALEM – The Nazi soldiers made their orders very clear: Jewish American prisoners of war were to be separated from their fellow brothers in arms and sent to an uncertain fate.

But Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds would have none of that. As the highest-ranking noncommissioned officer held in the German POW camp, he ordered more than 1,000 Americans captives to step forward with him and brazenly pronounced: "We are all Jews here."

He would not waver, even with a pistol to his head, and his captors eventually backed down.

Seventy years later, the Knoxville, Tennessee, native is being posthumously recognized with Israel's highest honor for non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during World War II. He's the first American serviceman to earn the honor.

"Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds seemed like an ordinary American soldier, but he had an extraordinary sense of responsibility and dedication to his fellow human beings," said Avner Shalev, chairman of the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum and memorial. "The choices and actions of Master Sgt. Edmonds set an example for his fellow American soldiers as they stood united against the barbaric evil of the Nazis."

It's a story that remained untold for decades and one that his son, the Rev. Chris Edmonds, only discovered long after his father's death in 1985.

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FBI Report Shows More Americans Are Buying Guns

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — More Americans than ever are buying or thinking about buying guns, according to a recent FBI report.

Amy Yensi has more on what’s behind the spike in sales.

Gun owners we spoke to say it’s a combination of things: mass shootings becoming all too common and the possibility that terror could be at our doorstep.

At the Pasadena Gun Pawn and Gunshop, more people than usual are coming in to buy guns.

“Probably for the last month and a half, I’ve had a lot of gun sales here lately,” said William Loane.

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School District Bans the Word 'Christmas' From Flyer

The school superintendent in Marlborough, New Hampshire issued a Yuletide edict to the local American Legion post: you can’t call a Christmas tree a Christmas tree.

John Fletcher, the commander of the local American Legion post, said he was banned from using the word “Christmas” to promote the town’s upcoming Christmas tree lighting.

The event is sponsored by the American Legion and the Monadnock Lions Club.

“He wanted to change it to say ‘holiday tree lighting’ instead,” Mr. Fletcher told FOX25 in Boston.

Needless to say, Supt. Robert Malay’s decision went over about as well as replacing Santa’s milk and cookies with tofu and a shot of wheatgrass.

“It’s not a holiday tree, it’s a Christmas tree,” said Mr. Fletcher.

“I was very upset, I really was,” he told the television station.

More here

Concerned citizen didn’t report shooter’s suspicious behavior for OUTRAGEOUS reason

While yesterday’s bloodbath in San Bernardino took most of us by surprise, we’re learning that there indeed were visible clues leading up to the incident — which, if heeded, potentially could have prevented unspeakable tragedy.

As authorities continue to investigate the home tied to one of the suspects, Syed Farook, one man who reportedly worked near the home is saying he’d grown suspicious of activity surrounding the home leading up to yesterday’s massacre.

So, you ask, why didn’t this concerned citizen report the suspicious activity to authorities — who may have then been able to investigate and potentially avert tragedy? The man reportedly didn’t want to appear racist.

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Watch Megyn Kelly Tear Apart Media for Biased Reporting On Planned Parenthood Shooting

Rev. Jesse Jackson Wants Special Prosecutor in Chicago Police Killing

Civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson said he remains incensed about what he claims was an elaborate cover-up by Chicago officials of the police shooting death of a black teen.

This week, Mayor Rahm Emanuel fired police Superintendent Garry McCarthy days after an officer there was charged with murder and a court order forced the release of a dashcam video of Officer Jason Van Dyke allegedly shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times. The 17-year-old had a knife, but did not appear to be lunging at police in the video. Jackson spoke by phone Wednesday with C4.

"The police chief, the mayor, and the state's attorney had the tape and they covered it up," Jackson said.

The video and autopsy report conflicted with the initial police story that claimed McDonald died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, as the Chicago Reporter reports.

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Obama in Paris on 'Mass Shooting' at Planned Parenthood: ‘This Just Doesn’t Happen in Other Countries’

At a press conference in Paris on Tuesday, where he had been attending the international climate summit, President Barack Obama said that "mass shootings" like the one that took place at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado last week just do not happen in countries other than the United States.

“With respect to Planned Parenthood, obviously, my heart goes out to the families of those impacted. I mean … I say this every time we’ve got one of these mass shootings. This just doesn’t happen in other countries,” Obama said in a news conference at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

On Friday, a gunman, Robert Lewis Dear, opened fire at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colo., killing three people and injuring nine in an hourslong standoff. A police officer was one of the victims who were slain, along with two civilians.

The president’s remarks come just over two weeks after members of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched multiple terrorist attacks in Paris, which is hosting the COP21 climate change summit, killing 130 people. In January, members of ISIS (also known as ISIL or the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant) attacked and killed 12 people in a mass shooting at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris.

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Md. police officer found guilty after video shows him pointing gun at man’s head

WASHINGTON — A Prince George’s County police office was found guilty on assault and other charges Wednesday after a cellphone video captures him pointing a gun at a Bowie resident’s head more than a year ago.

Officer Jenchesky Santiago, a three-year veteran of the department, was been found guilty on charges of assault, the use of a firearm in a crime of violence and misconduct in office.

Santiago will be sentenced in January.

In May 2014, prosecutors say that while patrolling a Bowie neighborhood, Santiago approached a car which he claimed was illegally parked. William Cunningham testified on Tuesday that he and his cousin were sitting in a car parked on the street outside of Cunningham’s home.

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Wow: What Just Surfaced Will Have Trump Claiming A HUGE Victory Over Media

When the media howled for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s head and an apology for claiming that Muslims in America celebrated as the Twin Towers burned, he stood tall and refused to back down.

New evidence shows he was right.

Amid silence from the media giants who claimed Trump was wrong, the truth emerges in the form of a New York Post article from September of 2011, in which writer Fred Siegel recalls the events of 9/11.

“Here in New York, it was easy to get angry listening to Egyptians, Palestinians and the Arabs of nearby Paterson, N.J., celebrate as they received word of the murderous attack in New York and Washington,” Siegel wrote.

“But Mayor Giuliani (who has been tireless and magnificent in this crisis) rightly warned New Yorker-ers that is would be wrong to take their anger our on the city’s Arab and Muslim residents. Attacks on Arab-Americans in Paterson or elsewhere are utterly indefensible,” Siegel wrote.

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UMD FAT STUDIES COURSE LABELS DIETING ‘SPECIAL ENEMY’ OF DIVERSITY

“Introduction to Fat Studies” will not engage “fatness” as a social or medical problem

Students at the University of Maryland will have the chance to “engage fatness” next term as part of a “Fat Studies” course offered by the school’s American Studies department.

“Introduction to Fat Studies” will not engage “fatness” as a social or medical problem, according to a syllabus for the course posted online. Instead, the course will approach fatness as “an aspect of human diversity, experience, and identity.”

The syllabus goes on to say that the course “will function as an introduction to the recent (and growing) field known as Fat Studies.” The field of Fat Studies, the syllabus claims, is “a field that is not concerned with the eradication of fatness, but with offering a sustained critique of anti-fat sentiment, discrimination, and policy.”

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How to calm a crying baby: Pediatrician's video goes viral


He calls it "The Hold." And Dr. Robert Hamilton, a pediatrician and father of six from Santa Monica, California, says it's the secret to quieting a crying baby.

Hamilton's demonstration of the technique in a video posted on YouTube has quickly gone viral, with more than 1.6 million views in its first three days.

In the video, the doctor shows how he folds a baby's arms across its chest, then holds the child with one hand around its chest and one hand under its bottom, gently rocking back and forth. It takes just moments for baby Ashton, who'd just gotten a shot, to stop crying.

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'White Student Unions' Springing Up At Universities

White student unions are reportedly being created at universities across Australia. The unions claim to support white students, which they say have been marginalized.

Seven of the unofficial unions popped up in the last week of November at the University of Queensland, University of Southern Queensland, Macquarie University, Western Sydney University, University of NSW, University of Western Australia and University of Technology, Sydney, notes News.com.au.

The question has been raised if these are legitimate student unions, or online farcical unions created by Internet trolls who hang out at right-wing social media sites such as 4chan and 8chan.

Snopes.com noted on Nov. 24 that white student unions formed on social media pages in the U.S. were probably all fake. The myth-busting site cited an article by The Daily Stormer, a reportedly racist website, which instructed readers to "Make more of these White Student Union pages on Facebook for various universities. You don’t have to go there. Make one for Dartmouth, Princeton, etc."
The site told readers to "Go, do it now. If they won’t let it on Facebook, put it on tumblr or wordpress or whatever. Get it up, then forward links to the local media."

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Wicomico Public Libraries Food For Fines Press Release

Texas AG: 'In God We Trust' Decals On Cop Cars Constitutional

There's nothing wrong with stickers or decals featuring the phrase "In God We Trust" on police vehicles, the Lonestar state's top cop assured lawmakers.

Attorney General Ken Paxton weighed in on the matter on Nov. 4 with a letter to two Republican state senators who asked if police departments were inviting legal trouble by including the phrase on patrol cars. Pointing to precedent in a series of court cases, Paxton noted challenges to "In God We Trust" on money, police vehicles and goverment property haven't been successful.

"Displaying ‘In God We Trust’ on police vehicles is a passive use of a motto steeped in our nation’s history that does not coerce Citizen approval or participation,” Paxton wrote to the state senators. “A law enforcement department’s decision to display the national motto on its vehicles is consistent with that history. Thus, a court is likely to conclude that a law enforcement department’s display of ‘In God We Trust’ on its patrol vehicles is permissible under the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution.”

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ISIS Czar a Terrorist Sympathizer Once Fired by Obama for Hamas Ties

A radical foreign policy adviser fired by President Obama years ago for meeting with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas is back as the administration’s new czar in charge of countering the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS).

The White House downplayed the new appointment by burying it deep in a press briefing delivered at a Paris hotel during the recent climate summit. “The President recently elevated Rob Malley, the NSC [National Security Council] Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, to serve now as the Senior Advisor to the President for the Counter-ISIL Campaign in Iraq and Syria,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said during the briefing at the Marriott Rive Gauche Hotel and Conference Center. Before moving onto the next topic Earnest said the president has directed Malley to “support our reinvigorated diplomatic track toward a political transition in Syria…”

Malley has a well-documented history of sympathizing with extremists, which makes this appointment rather outrageous. Judicial Watch wrote about Malley last year when Obama made him the senior director at the NSC even though the president had dumped him as a foreign policy adviser for meeting with and having regular contact with Hamas, long classified a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Malley’s family had close ties to Yasser Arafat, founder of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Fatah movement, and Malley was an adviser in Bill Clinton’s White House. He consistently exonerates Palestinians and condemns Israel.

Over the years he has published a number of newspaper opinion pieces urging the United States to reach out and negotiate with terrorist enemies like Hamas, Hezbollah and Muqtada al-Sadr.

More here

Campaign Puts People's Racist Facebook Comments On Billboards In Their Hometowns

Facebook trolls in Brazil might be doing double-takes after spotting their own inflammatory comments on roadside billboards.

An anti-racism campaign, dubbed "Virtual Racism, Real Consequences" uses geolocation info from racist Facebook posts to find the hometowns of the posters. Then the campaign rents local billboards, reproducing the ugly comments and informing passersby that the people who made those comments are their neighbors.

The group says its campaign isn't designed to shame Facebook trolls -- while the posts and content are reproduced on the billboards, the names of the posters are blurred out, and their avatars are heavily pixelated.

"We wanted to provoke a reflection. Does a comment on the internet cause less damage than a direct offense?" the group asks on its website. "For those who comment, it may be. But for those who suffer it, the prejudice is the same."

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Obama Calls for ‘Common-Sense, Gun Safety Laws,’ in Wake of San Bernardino Shooting

While giving an interview to CBS News on Wednesday, President Barack Obama made a statement on the ongoing situation involving a shooting in San Bernardino, CA.

CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell asked, “Mr. President, it seems there’s been another mass shooting in California. What do you know?”

Obama said, “Well, we don’t know that much yet. It’s still an active situation, FBI is on the ground offering assistance to local officials as they need it. It does appear there will be some casualties, and, you know, obviously our hearts go out to the victims and the families. The one thing we do know is that we have a pattern now of mass shootings in this country that has no parallel anywhere else in the world. There’s some steps we could take not to eliminate every one of these mass shootings, but to improve the odds that they don’t happen as frequently. Common-sense, gun safety laws, stronger background checks.

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Ehrlich Administration Attorney Officially Announces U.S. Senate Run

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Chrys Kefalas, who worked as an attorney in former Gov. Robert Ehrlich's administration, says he is running for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.

Kefalas made the announcement Tuesday.

Kefalas advised Ehrlich on clemency issues, which was a priority of the Republican governor during his tenure from 2003 to 2007.

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BREAKING NEWS: US military to open all combat jobs to women

Defense Secretary Ash Carter announces plan to open all combat jobs to women, the Associated Press reports.

Today I fell asleep in my stand and my camera picked this up

Today I fell asleep in my stand and my camera picked this up.

Posted by Weldon Peveto on Friday, November 27, 2015

Rep. Blackburn: Office Of Refugee Resettlement Not Being Honest Or Truthful

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) tells Breitbart News that the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) is “not being truthful, honest and transparent.”

“People know that the ORR doesn’t tell us what they’re doing,” Rep. Marsha Blackburn tells Breitbart News Daily host Steve K. Bannon. “They are not fulfilling their obligation. They are not being truthful, honest and transparent and we have been on this.”

“The Office of Refugee Resettlement is a mess. We need to temporarily shut the funding to that, we need to redirect those funds.”

Blackburn also told Breitbart News Daily that information about the refugee programs and processes aren’t being given to Congress.

“Right now those reports are not coming back to us,” Blackburn said. “What we are trying to do, is say look you have to do this, whether it is classified or in public formats the information has to come back to us.”

More here

Trump 100% Vindicated: CBS Reports ‘Swarm’ On Rooftops Celebrating 9/11

The DC Media has spent the last two weeks attempting to destroy Donald Trump with lies. Outright lies, and they are doing so in order to protect a 14 year-old cover up. Not only have eyewitnesses and contemporaneous reports proven Donald Trump 100% correct about Muslims celebrating 9/11, a just-uncovered local CBS News (WCBS-TV in New York) report completely vindicates Trump’s claim of “thousands and thousands” of Muslims celebrating the fall of the World Trade Center.

Here is video from a September 16, 2001 news report:

"..Just a couple of blocks away from that Jersey City apartment the F.B.I. raided yesterday and had evidence removed, there is another apartment building, one that investigators told me, quote, was swarming with suspects — suspects who I’m told were cheering on the roof when they saw the planes slam into the Trade Center. Police were called to the building by neighbors and found eight men celebrating, six of them tenants in the building..."

More here

Migrants Beat Up Locals In Restaurant In Germany

Migrants and locals got into a fight in a restaurant in Bavaria on Sunday, resulting in a 50-year-old German man receiving serious head injuries.

The brawl, which began as an argument between a small group of migrants and local residents eating at a restaurant in the town of Velden, started in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to Süddeutsche Zeitung.

The situation appeared to calm down when the migrants left, but they soon returned with reinforcements.

Around 15 people from the local asylum centre had joined them, with witnesses reporting fist fights and glass bottles being thrown. One witness said the square in front of the restaurant resembled a battlefield, covered in blood.

Six people were injured in the fight, with one 50-year-old German man needing hospital treatment for serious head injuries.

Police arrested a 25-year-old Syrian migrant, but later released him. The investigation continues.

Meanwhile in the town of Hattersheim, around 30 residents of the local asylum centre were involved in a fight the left four people injured.

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Sessions Rings Alarm About Spending Bill

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) is warning Americans that under newly minted House Speaker Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)’s and Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)’s planned government funding bill, President Barack Obama will be “allowed” to bring in 10,000 Syrian refugees and place them in American communities.

Session said in a statement released this morning:

"As currently written, this year’s appropriations bills – which will be combined into a catch-all ‘omnibus’ by December 11th – amount to a blank check for the President to carry out his refugee resettlement plans.

"Not only will the President be allowed to bring in the 85,000 refugees he has announced on top of current record immigration levels, but this will include at least 10,000 refugees from Syria who will subsequently be able to bring in their foreign relatives. All refugees are eligible for lifetime government benefits and Social Security and Medicare access, and are on a fast-track to becoming voting U.S. citizens. More than 90 percent of recent Middle Eastern refugees are on welfare."

Technically, the bill hasn’t yet been released– it likely won’t be released until mere hours before the vote–but it’s pretty clear at this point, from the public statements of the GOP leadership, that the plan in Congress is to pave the way for Obama.

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Trump rally in Manassas draws supporters, opponents

WASHINGTON — Presidential hopeful Donald Trump visited the D.C. region Wednesday night.

His rally at the Prince William County Fairgrounds in Manassas attracted people who both like him, and loathe him.

Scott Knuth, who has attended Trump rallies in Richmond and Norfolk, was first in line to get in.

“Mr. Trump tells it like it is, OK — where other politicians don’t want to,” he said.

“Our leader that’s in office right now, if you can call him that, and I don’t like taking stabs at him … he doesn’t want to pay attention to actually what’s going on in the world. He’s worried about climate change, and we’ve got ISIS,” Knuth added.

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Assad: Jihadist Terrorists Among Syrian ‘Refugees’

Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has confirmed the infiltration of Islamic State terrorists among the multitude of migrants flocking into Europe from Syria.

In an interview on Czech television, Assad said that Europeans have legitimate cause to fear the wave of Syrian migration, since among the masses are agents of ISIS.

“It’s a mixture,” Assad said. “The majority, they are good Syrians, they are patriots. But of course you have infiltration of terrorists among them, that is true.”

Among the Islamic State terrorists who perpetrated the November 13 attacks in Paris were at least two Syrians who entered Europe among the multitude of migrants.

More here

I Can't Argue This One, Can You?


Ted Cruz: ‘Overwhelming Majority of Violent Criminals are Democrats’

GOP presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) told conservative talk radio host Hugh Hewitt that “the simple and undeniable fact is the overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats” during an interview on Monday.

The Republican presidential candidate was discussing the shooting in Colorado Springs at a Planned Parenthood building where three people were killed.

According to Politico, “The suspect’s reported mention of ‘baby parts’ at the time of the shooting —as well as the location of the shooting — has linked the incident to the nation’s ongoing debate on abortion. It also led some people to blame the incident on the ugly rhetoric surrounding Planned Parenthood.”

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Detroit Police Chief: Armed Citizens Deter Terrorists

Detroit’s police chief says he believes the number of armed citizens in the city would deter would-be terrorists from carrying out attacks similar to those in Paris for fear of return fire.

“A lot of Detroiters have CPLs (concealed pistol licenses), and the same rules apply to terrorists as they do to some gun-toting thug, Chief James Craig said, The Detroit News reported. “If you’re a terrorist, or a carjacker, you want unarmed citizens.”

In Detroit last year, 1,169 handgun permits were issued and more than 8,000 guns were registered with the police department, The Detroit News reported. Statewide, more than 115,000 gun permits were issued, according to Michigan State Police and more than 30,000 Detroit residents are legally armed.

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Hogan questions reliability of new voting system

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Gov. Larry Hogan said Wednesday that he is concerned about Maryland’s new voting system “collapsing” next year due to problems found during testing, but the state’s elections administrator said she was confident in the system, which will have paper ballots as a backup.

The voting system came up unexpectedly at a Board of Public Works meeting, when Treasurer Nancy Kopp, a Democrat and one of three board members, asked how the state will manage voter education and outreach after a nearly $1 million contract was rejected by the board several months ago. Hogan, also a board member, said he was more concerned about the condition of the overall voting system, rather than what he described as a public relations campaign.

“I’m concerned about the entire system collapsing because, as I understand, the tests were sort of a dismal failure, and I think in one county there were 3,000 mistaken votes as I understand it,” said Hogan, a Republican.

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Corner Stores Turned EBT Cards Into Cash For Drugs, Wired Profit to Yemen

A couple of steaks shoplifted at a Gardendale, Alabama Walmart three months ago led to the biggest food stamp fraud investigation in Jefferson County's history, and launched 11 simultaneous raids at convenience stores countywide.

Led by the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office, teams of law enforcement officers met at 5 a.m. for a briefing and then fanned out across the county beginning at 6:50 a.m. The officers and agents were armed with 242 arrest warrants and plans to arrest 17 suspects.

All 17 suspects were in custody by mid-morning, and investigators already have filed for forfeiture and condemnation of those 11 stores, which totals more than $1 million in assets.

"This is huge for us,'' said Jefferson County District Attorney Brandon Falls.

The massive probe, dubbed Operation T-bone, targeted those they say have been cheating the food stamp system to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars and sending at least some of the profits via wire transfer to Yemen.

At the heart of the operation are Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards, a government-issued debit card that replaced food stamps. There are more than 900,000 people who get government assistance through the EBT card in Alabama each year, and they are allowed to use the cards for food, non-alcoholic beverages, and other basic needs, mostly through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

The investigation began in February when Gardendale police arrested a man for shoplifting steaks and some other items at Walmart in that city. When they interviewed the suspect, he said he was boosting the items to give to two convenience stores, and he named the stores, authorities said.

Investigators contacted Walmart's Global Investigations Unit in an effort to let them know they would like to attempt to sell property represented to be stolen to those stores, but when they told Walmart the nature of their probe, they learned the conglomerate was already investigating those two convenience stores for EBT fraud. Simply put, they learned, the store owners and managers were using EBT cards that did not belong to them to buy goods in bulk to sell at their stores.

How big is the problem? "It is enormous. It is pervasive,'' Raulston said.

More here

Syrian Refugees Have Been Resettled In 36 States, Most In CA,TX, MI

Since the start of the Syria’s civil war in the spring of 2011, the U.S. has admitted 2,311 Syrian refugees and resettled them in 36 different states.

According to data from the State Department’s Refugee Processing Center the top three destinations for Syrian refugees since the beginning of the conflict are California, Texas, and Michigan.

From March 15, 2011 through December 1, 2015, California received the most (261) Syrian refugees, Texas received the second most with 242, and Michigan has received the third most with 217.

Other states that have received Syrian refugees since March 2011 include: Arizona (182), Illinois (170), Pennsylvania (161), Florida (142), Kentucky (101), New Jersey (99), Ohio (89), Massachusetts (72), Georgia (69), North Carolina (56), New York (55), Connecticut (51), Maryland (43), Tennessee (42), Indiana (39), Washington (38), Idaho (37), Missouri (29), Virginia (26), Colorado (18), Louisiana (14), Utah (12), Kansas (8), Nevada (8), Minnesota (7), New Mexico (6), Oregon (6),New Hampshire (3), Oklahoma (3), Wisconsin (2), Arkansas (1), Maine (1), and West Virginia (1).

More details here

Twitter Threats to Black Students Made By Black Alumnus, Police Say

A recent Kean graduate has been charged with being responsible for a series of tweets threatening black students at the New Jersey school two weeks ago, acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park announced Tuesday.

Kayla-Simone McKelvey, 24, of Union – a black alum who graduated in May – was charged by summons with third-degree creating a false public alarm.

Park said an investigation by the Union County Prosecutor's Office's Special Prosecutions Unit and Kean University police found that McKelvey, a self-proclaimed activist, participated in a student rally to raise awareness of racism on college campuses on Nov. 17, but left midway through and walked to a computer station in a university library.

Once there, McKelvey allegedly created an anonymous Twitter account – @keanuagainstblk – and began posting threats of violence against black Kean students.

The first message around 10 p.m. said "kean university twitter against blacks is for everyone who hates blacks people" and a tweet about there being a bomb on the campus, and then continued with several other tweets about shooting black students at the university.

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Sheriff Joe Arpaio Sends Armed Citizens Into Malls To Protect Against Terrorist Attacks

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is sending his armed citizen posse into shopping malls to help keep shoppers secure from criminal and terror attack during the Christmas season.

But Sheriff Joe also highlighted the important roll concealed carry permit holders will play in Maricopa County:

"The volunteer posse can’t do it alone, so with nearly 250,000 Arizonans carrying concealed weapons, terrorists with evil intent entering large gatherings, including shopping malls, should be worried about armed citizens who will be ready to defend themselves and others."

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Another Police Shooting Yesterday You Haven't Heard About

Black man murdered by the San Francisco PD

Oh my God. This is in San Francisco earlier today

Posted by Shaun King on Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Worcester Proposes Eliminating Liquor Department In 2017; Exit Strategy Might Cost County $2.3 Million

SNOW HILL – The elimination of the Worcester County Department of Liquor Control could cost the county as much as $2.3 million.

County staff said this week that liquidating the department — ending wholesale operations in the fall of 2016 and ceasing retail operations in the summer of 2017 — would cost the county somewhere between $1 million and $2.3 million.

“The worst case scenario is a $2.3 million loss,” said Sonny Bloxom, the county’s attorney. “We can get it down to $1 million or less if everything comes together.”

County officials have been discussing an exit plan for the Worcester County Department of Liquor Control (DLC) since its monopoly on the local liquor market ended in 2014. Though DLC officials estimated a 25-percent decline in revenues, losses were much more significant. The department lost $492,554 — eliminating its $400,000 reserve fund — in FY 2015.

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A Viewer Writes: Redlands San Bernardino shootings

Click on image to enlarge.

Hey Joe,

I don't know who else to send this to. I've heard of this happening before. But, I have never seen it with my own eyes.

There is of course, already a Wikipedia page on the shooting in CA today. That was quick! I had heard that there was a facebook page up about the French shootings that was created the day before the french shootings. So, I looked at the Wikipedia edit history. There are a bunch of edits already and as I write this, it is 2330 ET 2 December on the east coast.

The Edits I first saw in the edit history are dated 0400 and later on the 3rd of December. I'm attaching a screen shot, whose name is a time stamp of when I did the screen shot.

Now, it is possible these edits are coming from someone east of the international date line. But, I doubt it. I've seen too much manipulation in the mass media to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Very Interesting. Thought you'd like to see this for yourself. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_San_Bernardino_shooting


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A Call for Patriots to Stand with Governors against Islamic Invasion of Their States

In light of Obama’s refusal to consider the national security of the united States in relocating individuals from other nations he terms “refugees” who cannot be vetted, period, to ensure a terrorist attack like the one in Paris, France, does not occur on uS soil, and Obama’s threats of action should States not comply, this letter goes out to all American citizens, in all States.

Dear Americans,

As has been broadcast in news reports and other media outlets, Barack Hussein Obama refuses to consider the safety of all American citizens, the national security of this nation and the founding tenets of this nation echoed in the Constitution in his unilateral, authoritarian, almost dictatorial edict of relocating unvetted masses of individuals, the majority of whom are Muslim, from various nations into the united States. In his own words, the uS is slated to import 100,000 individuals per year, mostly Muslim, termed “refugees” from Syria and nations elsewhere. Governors of thirty-one states have stood up to declare their support for the safety of their resident citizens, their commitment to the national security of the united States and their State, and to support the founding tenets of this nation by refusing to accept unvetted masses of individuals into the nation. Because of the vocal opposition of the people of the united States and the opposition of governors to his premise, Barack Hussein Obama publicly humiliated, impudently mocked, and chastised the entire population of the united States of America in front of numerous news cameras and world leaders. Moreover, Barack Hussein Obama threatens the States who do not comply with his demand of accepting mass numbers of individuals he terms “refugees.”

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Defense disputes whether officer could’ve saved Gray’s life

BALTIMORE (AP) — The first of six officers charged in a police custody death that sparked riots in Baltimore went on trial Wednesday as a prosecutor focused on what the patrolman failed to do: Push a button to call for a medic who might have saved Freddie Gray’s life.

Attorneys for Officer William Porter disputed this and other claims made in the trial’s opening statements, questioning how and when Gray’s neck was broken in the back of a police van, and whether the young black man was really in need of medical attention when he first asked for it.

“You may hope finding him guilty will quell unrest,” but Porter committed no crime, defense attorney Gary Proctor told jurors.

“Let’s show Baltimore the whole damn system isn’t guilty as hell,” Proctor said, paraphrasing a chant used by protesters in the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Jeez. What ever happened to the ‘free world’??

On August 12, 1961, Walter Ulbricht, the Chairman of the State Council in East Germany, signed an order to close the border and begin building a wall around East Berlin.

It happened quickly. Soldiers began tearing up the roads leading into West Berlin almost immediately and actually stood with weapons at the border with orders to shoot anyone who tried to cross.

Before long there were barbed-wire fences. Then concrete walls. Then dogs. Guard towers. And even anti-tank obstacles.

Of course, the East German government told people that the wall was for their protection, ostensibly to keep out rapists and thieves.

They said that there were too many foreigners coming in to East Berlin who unfairly bought up state-subsidized goods.

They also warned people of the looming threat of fascist invaders, and even went as far as to call the wall an “Anti-fascist protective rampart”.

As a child of the ’80s (I was born at the tail-end of the Carter administration), I remember how the Berlin Wall was a symbol of tyranny and oppression.

And from the steps of the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin, Ronald Reagan told the world in a now-famous speech from 1987, “The advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace,” before demanding, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

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Rep. Babin on Clinton Emails: 'Everything Is Pointing to the Lady's Guilt'

Hillary Clinton is sure to be indicted in the Benghazi email scandal because "everything is pointing to the lady's guilt," Rep. Brian Babin told Newsmax TV on Tuesday.

"It would not be surprising if Hillary did wind up getting an indictment," Babin, 67, a first-term Texas Republican, told "Newsmax Prime" host John Bachman. "Everybody gets their day in court."

FBI Director James Comey is continuing his investigation into the Democratic front-runner's use of a private email server during her four years as secretary of state.

Comey's decision on whether Clinton had classified information on the server is expected to have strong implications in the 2016 presidential race.

So far, as many as 1,000 emails have been determined to have contained classified information.

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Dorchester County Sheriff's Office Press Releases 12-3-15

 


On Sunday, November 29, 2015 deputies from the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office arrested 19 year old Jacob Charles Overstreet of 11 Buena Vista Ave., Cambridge, Md. He was charged in connection with an incident in which he attacked another person in the yard of that residence with a machete. During the altercation the victim was bitten several times by the suspect on the face, chest and his right hand. The victim sought treatment at Dorchester General Hospital on his own. The suspect was charged with First Degree Assault and Second Degree Assault and incarcerated on $75,000.00 Bond.

A deputy from the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office responded to a Burglary in progress on Green Point Road, East New Market, Md. on Friday, November 27, 2015. Upon arrival it was learned that 41 year old Amy Michelle Wilson of 1021 Zircion Court, Salisbury, Md. had gained entry to a garage and the residence there, assaulted the home owner and fled the scene. A second deputy near Vienna was able to locate the suspect and take her into custody as she was traveling on Rt.50. The suspect was charged with First Degree Burglary, Third Degree Burglary, Fourth Degree Burglary, Malicious Destruction of Property over $500.00 and Second Degree Assault and ordered Held on $5,500.00 Bond.
 
On Wednesday, November 25, 2015 deputies working in a covert capacity in the area of Moores Avenue, Cambridge observed 2 suspects involved in suspected drug activity. When deputies approached the two separated and one fled on a bicycle. The two suspects were taken into custody and identified as 64 year old Clevon Lemartin Tilghman of 621
Race Street, Cambridge, Md. and 61 year old Aldrain Lamarr Nichols of 762 Foxtail Drive, Cambridge, Md. Tilghman was charged with Distribution of Crack Cocaine, Possession of Crack Cocaine, Possession with Intent to Distribute Crack Cocaine and Possession of Paraphernalia. He was ordered Held on $150,000.00 Bond. Nichols was charged with Possession of Crack Cocaine and Possession of Paraphernalia and Held on $3,000.00 Bond. 

The Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office has received reports of citizens receiving packages from U.P.S., FedEx, etc. and the packages being stolen from the delivery location. Sheriff Phillips is reminding everyone to make an effort to retrieve the deliveries as soon as possible after being delivered to deprive these roving thieves that are following the delivery trucks the opportunity to remove the packages. If anyone notices anything suspicious please call the local police department.

Liberal Logic


Applebees, IHOP Drop Soda from Kid's Menu

Restaurant chains Applebee's and IHOP are dumping soda from their children's menus nationwide.

"We believe this is a small step in assisting parents while dining out, as parents are in the best position to determine the appropriate food and beverage choices for their children," Craig Hoffman, a spokesman for DineEquity, the group that owns Applebee's and IHOP, told ABC News in a statement.

But the move doesn't mean kids won't have the chance to drink soda at all at the two chains; soft drinks will still be available for adults who request them for their children, according to the statement. Other kids' menu beverages such as milk, chocolate milk, hot chocolate and, beginning next spring, juice, will be featured in the IHOP's children's menu, Hoffman said. Similar options are available at Applebee's, he added.

"We believe in having a broad variety of selections so our guests have a choice that best meets their needs," the statement said.

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2015 East Coast Lady Trooper Charity Softball Tournament

The Delaware State Police along with eight other states (Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina)throughout the east coast have distinguished themselves well with this year’s softball tournament and fundraiser. All teams have come together to play softball and demonstrate dedication to the communities they serve. This year the East Coast Lady Troopers have done an excellent job and raised $19,000.00. This will allow the Special Olympics of Delaware and Camp Barnes to receive $9,500.00 each. Everyone who participated in this year's annual charity event showed enormous support for two very significant and meaningful causes. The tremendous success was attributed to the spirit of good friendship and loyalty among fellow Troopers from other states working to raise money for local charities.

The Delaware State Police would like to thank everyone for a great tournament! Without the below sponsors and strong community support we could not have had this much success. Thank you!

Delmarva Power
Matt Haley’s Global Delaware Fund
Sports at the Beach
Delaware State Troopers Association
Jimmy’s Grill
16 Mile Brewery
Margarita Man
Commissioner Robert C. Coupe, Delaware Department of Corrections

“Thank you all for your excellent representation of the State and the Delaware State Police. This event was more than a Charity Softball Tournament; it was reflective of the many ways that law enforcement continues to be actively involved in our communities. Most of all thank you to our Troopers for representing the State in extraordinary fashion. We are all proud of your accomplishment. Congratulations!”

Colonel Nathaniel McQueen, Jr.
Superintendent of the Delaware State Police
"The event filled weekend hosted by the Delaware State Police allowed us to accomplish our fundraising goal. Without the support of several individuals, many organizations, law enforcement agencies and the communities throughout the state this would not have been possible. I would like to thank all those involved on behalf of the Delaware State Police Women Softball Teams for a wonderful event. The support from our fellow troopers and the community helped support these amazing charities, Special Olympics of Delaware and The Delaware State Police -Camp Barnes."

Captain Melissa Hukill
Delaware State Police

During the opening ceremony Master Corporal Chris Popp and his son Brendan threw out the first pitch.

Who Do You Think Won?


There's A Tool For That


L.A. Considers Law to Scan All Cars, Publicly Shame Anyone Who Drives Through a ‘Prostitution Area’

To make matters even worse, all the data collected in the process would be a matter of public record.

Los Angeles, CA —
A Los Angeles city councilwoman just proposed one of the most chilling uses of license plate scanners ever.

As an ostensible means of deterring prostitution, Nury Martinez, of the LA city council, wants to scan every single license plate, make a list, and mail out a shame letter to every person who drives through an arbitrary area deemed a prostitution zone.

You read that right. For merely driving through a designated area, Martinez proposes publicly shaming any and every motorist by scanning their license plate.

Martinez told CBS Los Angeles, “If you aren’t soliciting, you have no reason to worry about finding one of these letters in your mailbox. But if you are, these letters will discourage you from returning. Soliciting for sex in our neighborhoods is not OK.”

The idea is so Orwellian, so fascist even, that the police themselves have deemed it unconstitutional.

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