Augusta Georgia Plane Crash

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Five bodies from last night’s plane crash at the Thomson-McDuffie County Airport near Augusta Georgia, have been taken to the GBI crime lab in Atlanta.

The aircraft was much like this Beechcraft Hawker

John Bankhead, public information officer for the GA Bureau of Investigation said that the five bodies will undergo autopsies there in the coming days.

McDuffie County Fire Rescue Chief Bruce Tanner said that the bodies were removed from the scene around 4 a.m. today.

Tanner said that the bodies were strewn throughout the main crash site. He added that the wreckage stretched for about a mile.

NTSB officials say the plane was attempting to land at the Thomson McDuffie Regional airport just after 8 p.m. last night when the pilot over-shot the runway.

Witnesses said that they saw the plane over run the runway then pull up to avoid the Milliken plant building. Tanner said that the plane clipped a set of large electric transmission lines that run behind Milliken, shearing off one entire wing.

Power to more than 5,000 electric customers was out for a brief time last night in McDuffie and Columbia counties. The power at the Kinsgley Mill plant was turned back on this morning. Tanner said there were two survivors. One of the survivors was the pilot who was found by rescue workers as they arrived, walking about 300 feet from the wreckage. The other survivor was found in the wreckage still in his front cockpit seat. Both were airlifted out to the GA Regents Medical Center trauma unit; however GRU says that they have one victim at the hospital who is listed in critical condition.

Members of the NTSB go team have arrived in Thomson and are expected to have a press conference sometime today to give preliminary information on the crash. There is still no confirmation on the identities of the victims.

Cedar's Take: This accident has some surprising similarities to the 2010 crash of Jack Roush's private jet at Oshkosh. WI.

Same identical aircraft also doing a go around.

From Wikipedia:

On July 27, 2010, Roush crash-landed in his Hawker Beechcraft Premier 390 jet, (registration N6JR,) during an approach to the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture Fly-In in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in the late afternoon.[5] He walked out of the plane and was taken to a nearby hospital.[6] His condition was listed at serious but stable that evening. On August 3, Roush was upgraded to fair condition.[6] On August 13, Roush made his first at track appearance since the incident at the Michigan International Speedway. During that time he confirmed that he fractured his back, broke his jaw, and lost his left eye as a result.[7] The National Transportation Safety Board attributed the cause of the crash to pilot error, specifically, "pilot's decision not to advance the engines to takeoff power during the go-around, as stipulated by the airplane flight manual, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall at a low altitude."

Also see:

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nascar/story/2012-06-22/jack-roush-plane-crash-pilot-error-2010-oshkosh-wisconsin-ntsb-report

The owners of Vein Guys had recently traded up from the Beechcraft King Air to the higher performance Hawker Beechcraft Jet

Friday Wrap Up - Sunshine Edition

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CMPD Captain Chuck Adkins termination hearing is now set to be called on Monday February 25 at 8:30 a.m.


The Civil Service Board hearings are held at The Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center Room 14 Room Basement.

CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe is seeking to fire Capt. Chuck Adkins but as with all terminations officers can appeal the termination to the Civil Service Board.

The board, which can overturn the firing, was scheduled to take up Adkins’ earlier this month but the hearing was postponed at the last moment.

According to the Charlotte Observer "Adkins, was assigned to the watch commander's office often overseeing police operations on nights or weekends, has stated publiclly he doesn’t believe his actions warranted termination. and has asked the hearing be held in public."

Cedar's Take: The highly unusual move should shed some "Sunshine" on CMPD's termination process and the effectiveness of the Civil Service Board.

More from the Charlotte Observer here.

Jerry Orr - Charlotte's curmudgeonly airport manager is keeping a low profile as he continues to push his secession plan. Cedar Posts has long pointed out that Charlotte's cash cow, the airport needed tighter control and should contribute to the city's bottom line.

Now a number of revelations have exposed some shady financial dealings and that is just the tip of the "berg". Meanwhile local Democrats are crying foul, yet make no effort to clean up the mess and there are few if any guarantees that taking the airport away from the City of Charlotte will clean up the mess.

CMPD Promotions - Water cooler talk is that Eddie Levins will be promoted to Deputy Chief and Freda Lester will get the nod to Major. Other promotions will follow, but notable are those who were passed over, including Majors Sheri Pearsal and Cam Selvey.

Cedar's Take: Big Head Ed needs to step up his game and honor the spirit of the thin blue line.

In other words, here is a chance for someone in Command to make a difference, to lead by example. One of the most glaring things I've seen since Chief Monroe's arrival was during a Holiday Event. When it came time to form up at the buffet line, the Chief follow by nearly every DC, Major and Captain lead the way. That, as any military commander would tell you is just all sorts of wrong. Troops eat first, always the Chief should have been last. 

Social Media Follies - While a number of Charlotte's news personalities have Facebook and Twitter accounts, apparently only WCNC "requires" reporters and anchors to "tweet" at least once a day and follow strict guidelines and polices which are deemed to "enhance" the stations visibility.

WCNC's Dianne Gallagher created her "required" Facebook page adding "I reluctantly present my mandatory Facebook Page. I just didn't want to make a page....but I don't really have a choice."



Dianne Gallagher is an award winning reporter/anchor at NBC Charlotte/WCNC. Political junkie. Sport nut. Dog Lover. Polyglot (x6) News tips: dgallagher@wcnc.com
Cedar's Take: Micro managers are the scourge of the business world. In other words, if it is not broken don't fix it.

Charlotte's Mayor Foxx - had his twitter account hacked over the weekend and suddenly his followers found themselves on the receiving end of tweets advertising "Sunshine wants to share her private photos with you".

Cedar's Take: Only an idiot would actually click on the link and then enter his password which automatically turned his account in a spambot.

CMPD Officer Trial Postponed - Cecil Brathwaite who is still on the CMPD payroll was on the Mecklenburg Superior Court calendar this week, but his trial was moved back to April 25, 2013. Brathwaite is charged with false imprisonment and assault with a gun during a domestic dispute with his ex wife and the victim the ex wife's boyfriend.

More on Brathwaite's arrest here.

NOTE: It is not often that CP shuts down the comments on a post. However, when it starts going over the top and the personal attacks get out of hand, it is time to take a deep breath.

If you have a point to make about any of the above items just drop an email to cedarposts@gmail.com and we'll be happy to add your comment.

Carry On - Cedar

Vein Guys Plane Crash Victims Named

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GBI Crime Lab positively identified victims in Wednesday's plane crash as Dr. Steven Roth, a managing partner of the Vein Guys, and Vein Guys employees; nurse anesthetist Lisa Volpitto, ultrasound technician Tiffany Porter, and Dr. Roth's Administrative Assistant, Kimberly Marie Davidson, 43.

The medical examiner is still working to identify a fifth fatality. However, the family of Heidi McCorkle, an ultrasound technician, said they had been notified that she had also died.

Clockwise from the top left Heidi McCorkle, Lisa Volpitto, Dr. Steven Roth, Tiffany Porter, Kim Davidson

Local papers have reported that Richard Trammell, was being treated and was in critical condition they have no named the pilot who was reported as having only minor injuries.

Cedar Posts has learned that the private jet that crashed Wednesday night is the same type and model that Jack Roush crashed in 2010. In fact Jack Roush was attempting to abort a landing in Oshkosh Wisconsin when his plane crashed.

Jack Roush's Hawker Beechcraft 390 Premier I N6JR

The Hawker Beechcraft 390 I has been very popular with the NASCAR crowd in that it is very fast and relatively affordable.

Clint Bowyer Racing owns the same type and model as well.

Clint Bowyer Racing's Hawker Beechcraft 390 Premier 1 N78CB

Additionally Cedar Posts has learned that Thomson McDuffie Regional Airport is known to have a deer hazard. One pilot who has flown into the airport at night said he was surprised to find a number of deer standing just off the runway one night a couple of years ago.

Since the airport doesn't have a control tower often at the night the airport is void of staff or other pilots who might notice the deer. The airport information available on line also notes: "DEER ON RWY AT NIGHT".

In depth coverage from the Augusta Chronical here.

The following is an update from the Associated Press:

THOMSON, Ga. (AP) - A small private jet carrying a surgeon and members of his clinic staff aborted its landing at a Georgia airport before it hit a 60-foot utility pole and crashed in a flaming wreck, killing five people onboard and injuring two, federal authorities said Thursday.

Workers from Georgia Power repair electrical lines near the site of a private jet crash east of the Thomson-McDuffie County Airport.

National Transportation Safety Board member Robert Sumwalt said fuel leaking from the plane ignited in flames Wednesday night after it hit the concrete pole with enough force to sheer off the left wing. He said investigators found pieces of the plane strewn over 100 yards.

View of Vien Guys Jet Crash Site Thomson-McDuffie Airport

"The wreckage was severely fragmented, and it is almost completely destroyed by fire," Sumwalt said at a news conference Thursday afternoon. "...You walk up and you say to yourself, `Where is the airplane?'"
Investigators don't yet know why the plane aborted its landing at Thomson-McDuffie Regional Airport, a small terminal with a 5,500-foot runway about 30 miles west of Augusta.

The plane with seven people aboard had departed from John Tune Airport in Nashville, Tennessee, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said.

Sumwalt said investigators would interview air-traffic controllers to see if the pilots made a distress call and search for a flight-data recorder from the plane that might yield clues. He also said authorities had obtained video from a security camera at the airport but had not yet reviewed it.

The Hawker Beechcraft 390/ Premier I, a small business jet that seats two pilots and six passengers, was carrying five staff members of the Vein Guys clinic of vascular medicine specialists in Augusta, said Dr. Stephen Davis, a plastic surgeon who works for an affiliated Vein Guys clinic in Nashville.

The crash started a brush fire in the woods behind an industrial plant near the airport. Witnesses reported power outages in the area as well.

The private jet had been flying fairly frequently from the Thomson airport during the past several months, said Keith Bounds, the airport's general manager.

"The pilots were familiar with the facility, familiar with the area and familiar with the runway," Bounds said.

"And the airplane was immaculate. The pilots kept it in pristine condition."

The pilots had sent an electronic message to close out their flight plan before the jet overshot the runway - a sign that they began their landing approach without problems, Bounds said. Skies in the area were clear Wednesday night with light wind, he said.

There was no damage or other physical signs that the jet ever touched down on the runway, Bounds said. The plane crossed a five-lane state highway near Interstate 20 before it struck the utility pole about a quarter-mile from the end of the runway.

In Case You Missed It - CMPD' s Internal Affairs Division AddressesCitizens Review Board

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How CMPD's Internal Affairs fits with the Citizens Review Board.


Before citizens take complaints of misconduct to the Citizens Review Board, they must wait for findings from CMPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau.

CMPD disciplined hundreds of officers between 2004 and 2011, Internal Affairs reports show.

More than 3,500 allegations accusing police of misconduct were filed during those eight years. A majority of the complaints – more than 2,100 – were levied by police officers against fellow officers. Citizens filed more than 1,400 complaints.

Internal Affairs found police misconduct in 26 percent of complaints lodged by citizens. When CMPD supervisors and officers filed complaints, 85 percent, more than 1,800, led to findings of misconduct.

More than 3,000 disciplinary actions, including more than 500 suspensions, were levied against officers during the eight-year period. Officers were given written reprimands more than 900 times. They were ordered to undergo counseling more than 1,300 times.

Fifty-four officers were fired. Seventy-five resigned.

Offenses included rule violations, unbecoming conduct, neglect of duty and use of force.

When citizens aren’t satisfied with outcomes of the Internal Affairs investigations, they can appeal to the Citizens Review Board. But citizens have never won a case before the 11-member panel.

Maj. Cam Selvey, who heads CMPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau, doesn’t believe the review board is a rubber stamp for the police department.

“It means the CMPD does a good job of taking care of discipline in the organization,” Selvey said. “I think the people of this community would have reason to be concerned if the Citizens Review Board was disagreeing with us a lot. That would be an indication of a systemic problem within the organization. We don’t have that type of problem here.”

The Onion Stinks

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Someone at The Onion thought Tweeting the "C" word would be funny, and apparently thought directing it at 9-year-old Best Actress Oscar nominee Quvenzhane Wallis. would be funnier.

Caution: The Below Image contains the "C" word and is pretty tasteless.

Moments after the above tweet appeared @TheOnion received a phalanx of tweets condemning the poor judgement.

The Onion deleted the tweet about a hour later and their tweeter feed fell silent.

But then things went crazy, when some wacko, Elizabeth Hawksworth from Canada thought it necessary to point out the Wallis was a women of colour and that this would have never happened to Dakota Fanning.
Cedar's Take: I thought shock humor went out of style with Andrew Dice Clay and Richard Pryor?

Sheriff’s Office continues checking underage alcohol sales

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On February15, 2013 the Special Investigations Division conducted anoperation checking businesses that sell alcohol in the Upper Keys. Seventeenbusinesses were checked including restaurants, convenience stores andbars. Two of the businesses served alcohol to minors during theinvestigation. The two people were given notices to appear before a MonroeCounty Judge.

The following area list of the businesses and suspects who sold the alcohol:

·        Walgreens 99501 Overseas highway Key Largo, Fl  – 66 year old Carlos Ruiz Hernandez wasissued a notice to appear in court. ·        Bill’s Liquor store 91400 Overseas Hwy Islamorada, Fl  – 48 year oldKim Pravata was issueda notice to appear in court.
The Sales Clerkviolations are punishable with up to 60 days in jail, a $500 fine, $235 incourt costs, $75 in the cost of prosecution, and $40 in the cost ofinvestigation.

The LicenseeViolations are:
·        1st offense $1000 fine and 7 day suspension·        2nd offense $3000 fine and 30 day suspension·        3rd offense Revocation of license.The remainingbusinesses checked, were in compliance with the law.

This operationwas conducted in cooperation with the Monroe County Coalition for a Safe andDrug Free Community.

Easter on the Animal Farm March 24th

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Join the Sheriff’s Office and the Sheriff’s Animal Farm onSunday, March 24th for the Annual Easter on the Farm celebration!
Bring the family and join the fun at the farm; the event isfree of charge and offers something for everyone. The Easter bunny will bethere to hide eggs for the kids and to take pictures with them as well. TheEaster egg hunt starts at 1 p.m. so don’t be late or you will miss it! Bringyour own Easter basket. There will also be face painting, arts and crafts and,of course, visits with all the animals at the farm.
Mark your calendars and come to the farm between 1 and 3p.m. on March 24th. The farm is located just off of College Road, at theSheriff’s Office on Stock Island.

Man arrested for vehicle burglaries

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Ramrod Key – Sheriff’s deputies arrested a man Tuesday forburglarizing two vehicles in the parking lot of Boondock’s Restaurant on RamrodKey.

The owner of the restaurant called the Sheriff’s Office at 6p.m. after he saw 24 year old Keitel Romero inside one of the vehicles in theemployee parking lot of the business. Deputy Spenser Bryan responded to thecall. Romero was still there when the deputy arrived.
Investigations revealed Romero had entered two differentvehicles. He’d used a permanent marker to “tag” the glove box of one vehicle,and had ransacked another one and damaged the vehicle’s ignition in an apparentattempt to steal it. Loose change from the cars was found in Romero’s pockets,along with a spark plug which Romero told deputies could be used to breakwindows in order to get into cars.
The restaurant owner told deputies Romero had also purchasedfood inside earlier in the evening and had failed to pay for it.
Romero was charged with two counts of vehicle burglary,criminal mischief, theft, possession of burglary tools and defrauding aninnkeeper. He was booked into jail.

Key Largo man arrested on drug charges

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Key Largo – A Key Largo man was arrested on drug chargesafter a traffic stop by Sheriff’s deputies Tuesday night.

Deputy Pedro Garcia was on patrol at 10 p.m. when he spottedthe white Lincoln swerving multiple times over the white line of the highway betweenthe 104 and the 105 mile marker of Highway U.S. One. The deputy pulled thevehicle over. The driver was 26 year old Eddy Diaz.
As the deputy spoke with Diaz, he saw clearly visible in thecar a prescription pill bottle on the driver’s side floor board. Sgt. JasonMadnick arrived as back up. Diaz gave consent for the officers to search hiscar. In the pull bottle was Xanax and Oxycodone. A second bottle was foundwhich contained Acetaminophen with Hydrocodone. A third bottle, found behindthe passenger seat, contained miscellaneous pills and a plastic bag withmarijuana inside.
In the trunk of the car, the officers found a “Shark Bites”snack box with two more plastic bags of marijuana inside. Over $500 in cash wasfound in Diaz’ pocket. Total weight of all the marijuana was 65 grams.
Diaz was arrested. He was charged with possession ofmarijuana with intent to sell, two counts possession of a controlled substancewithout a prescription and four counts possession of drug paraphernalia. He wasbooked into jail.

Tavernier man arrested for attempting to steal money from local bank

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Tavernier – A Tavernier man was arrested Tuesday after heattempted to deposit three fraudulent checks into his bank account at CommunityBank. The bank discovered the crime after finding out the Citibank account thechecks were written on was not a real account.
21 year old Cole Peacock attempted to defraud Community bankby depositing the three checks for a total of $22,000.00. When Deputy MikeSielicki arrived, Peacock was still at the bank. He claimed the checks werefrom a company called Data Point Systems, located at 234 Azalea Street inTavernier. That address is also Peacock’s home address. He then later admittedto ordering the checks on line, but said he didn’t know they were written on acounterfeit account.
During the course of an investigation by Sheriff’s DetectiveFrancisco Gaete, Peacock claimed to have accessed the Sheriff’s Office securenetwork. He also claimed to have accessed the DAVID system, a secure vehicleidentification system belonging to the State of Florida.
Information Systems specialists at the Sheriff’s Office saythey have no evidence Peacock did access the secure part of the Sheriff’sOffice network. When detectives asked Peacock to show them how he did it, hewas unable to access the Sheriff’s Office computer network at that time and, infact, was only able to access portions of the Sheriff’s Office web site whichis publicly accessible and could not penetrate the network farther than that.
His computer and computer equipment was seized for furtherinvestigation.
Detectives did gain information which indicates he may havehad access to a Sheriff’s Office laptop computer several years ago. At thattime, a Sheriff’s Office employee who has since retired asked Peacock to helphim copy two non-work related files off the computer. There is no indication hegained access at that time to the MCSO secure network, however while Peacockwas helping to copy the files, he had access to the computer’s hard drive andmay have gained access to an authentication certificate for the DAVID system.Investigations are underway to see if he was able to use that certificate togain access to the secure DAVID network using the stolen certificate.
Peacock was arrested. He was charged with grand theft,fraud, three counts uttering a forged instrument and accessing a computer without the authority to do so.
Investigations are continuing.

YouTubers Don't Like What Happened to Dorner Either

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It's not just me.
I'm not alone in wondering what the fuck.



Alan Middleton 6 days ago
These fucking cops mistook 2 asian ladies in a different car than dorners for dorner, now they casually decide they are gonna burn down someones cabin that is not their own. YOU CANNOT FUCKING DO THAT. They dont have a positive ID on the suspect, and these fucking cops assume its OK to act like this, and there are people that think its ok. Its not. Cops are our Civil Servants not the fucking Gestapo doing whatever they want at will cause a few of theirs got killed and exposed.

IEatSand22890 6 days ago
Yeah enough is enough god damnit. The entire American population is being taken for a bunch of fucking idiots. This is what tactics your government is reverting to people. Instead of helping you keep your house, educating your children, or start to fix the economy they are roasting people alive without due process and trying to take your guns. Wake the fuck up. It's only going to get worse. Don't be a fool.

Cindy BarPo 6 days ago
Just wondering, where you this upset when Janet Reno and Bill Clinton ordered the compounded with 27 children in be burned to the ground.
They never murdered anyone, and were burned alive.

IEatSand22890 3 hours ago
Are you talking about Waco? Or however it's spelled. If so, then yes because it was an atrocity.



However:


Callepunk0 5 hours ago
I hope he was crying like a bitch, and burned alive.

One of America's "Most Urgent Traffic Safety Issues"

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I'm not popular when I suggest to people that cell phone talking should be banned altogether.

And I do understand that when you're sitting in traffic and things aren't moving, you sort of want to reach out to someone and not be alone.

However----at high speeds, it should definitely be banned. I have absolutely no question in my mind about that----based on 18 years of traffic reporting and over two decades of driving, much of that in L.A.



Source: National Safety Council, NSC Journal of Safety Research



National Safety Council President & CEO Janet Froetscher identified cell phone use while driving as one of America’s most urgent traffic safety issues. In January the NSC became the first national organization to call for a total ban on that activity, based on scientific estimates that cell phone use while driving contributes to 6 percent of crashes, or 636,000 crashes, 330,000 injuries, 12,000 serious injuries, and 2,600 deaths each year. The same research put the annual financial toll of cell phone-related crashes at $43 billion.

“Our nation has reached a point where we estimate more than 100 million people are engaging in this dangerous behavior daily,” Froetscher said, adding that the issue is not the type of phone a driver uses, rather it is the distraction caused by the conversation. “Hands-free devices do not make cell phones any safer. Several studies indicate that the principle risk is the cognitive distraction. Studies also show that driving while talking on a cell phone is extremely dangerous and puts drivers at a four-times greater crash risk.”

Celebrating Bradley Manning

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There's a gathering in L.A. this weekend to honor Brad Manning, who's been incarcerated for over a thousand days now.

The person who is holding it described it as a "celebration", which annoyed one reader:

Mike on 20 February 2013 at 10:04 am said:
LOOKS LIKE IM GOING TO GO TO LONG BEACH THEN … IT LOOKS LIKE THEN WILL GET MORE DONE… AND HAVE MORE FUN THEN A CELEBRATION … THIS IS FAR FROM A TIME TO HAVE SOME SORT OF CELEBRATION!! OH YAY BRANDY MANNING HAS BEEN IN JAIL 1000 DAYS WITH NO TRIAL … i KNOW LETS CELEBRATE LOL UR REDIUCULUS !! ANYONE LOOKING FOR A REAL PROTEST GO TO LONG BEACH THEY ARE OCCUPYING FOR THE NIGHT https://www.facebook.com/events/410919635668843/411432722284201/



Bruce Mitchell on 21 February 2013 at 2:51 pm said:
Mike,
You are foolish to criticize an event which seeks to gather together like minded people in support of Bradley Manning and promoting transparency. Activism takes many forms — mutual support is one of them and a very positive one at that. Please do not tear others down just because you favor a different way; attacking others who seek to do what they can in their own way does not serve the interests of a movement.

To the host of this gathering:
Please do not allow such a foolish comment discourage your efforts.


N Fuller on 21 February 2013 at 9:17 pm said:
Celebrate means to honor, and Bradley Manning deserves that. All good wishes for your gathering to enlighten and educate people about his kind of bravery. I cannot attend, but we will have signs at our weekly vigil on Pico and La Cienega on Friday.




I commented:

I look at it this way. Until I learned about Bradley Manning, I felt deeply depressed and disillusioned with the military and the wars they are fighting.
I have a brother in the military who will not talk to me (possibly because I support Bradley Manning) and a family who may actually believe that I am wrong to stand for peace. They apparently do not believe peace is patriotic or perhaps they believe my position demeans or disregards my brother somehow, which I do not want to do. I can do nothing, say nothing to them; I can’t find the words. In fact I can’t really even find words to write about it here. There’s nothing but heartbreak there, and if Brad Manning actually did what he’s accused of doing–leaking the Apache helicopter video–then I do regard him as a hero and any recognition of him, and of journalism as it must be practiced in extreme times, feels like a celebration.
A while back I stood on the corner in front of the British Consulate in Westwood with a bunch of young people who were holding a little rally for Brad Manning. It was nighttime and no one even noticed them. But just seeing that people cared enough to come out made a big difference for me. It gave me hope that some of the madness might somehow be mitigated. In my everyday life I see no one who cares or is even aware of Manning’s situation (despite my constant T-shirt-wearing, postcard displays, buttons and so forth) and so getting together with people who *are* aware is really great.

What Do "Conservatives" Stand For?

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Not that I think labels really do anyone any good, but there is a certain truth to what this person commenting says.

I like the comment so much that I'm reproducing it here.


Source: Antiwar.com



Cynical in New York:


Conservatives are good at putting up a false opposition to liberal statism, when in reality they're only against statism when they're not in power. It doesn't matter which flavor of conservative statism whether it's neoconservative statism or paleoconservative statism.

To quote Lew Rockwell

"What does conservatism today stand for? It stands for war. It stands for power. It stands for spying, jailing without trial, torture, counterfeiting without limit, and lying from morning to night. There comes a time in the life of every believer in freedom when he must declare, without any hesitation, to have no attachment to the idea of conservatism."

or if you want something more simpler

"Conservatism is just pro-war socialism"

- Anthony Gregory

In my view libertarians have wasted enough time of trying to work conservatives. Ron Paul's presidential campaigns should've been a wake up call on how libertarians are viewed in the conservative movement. Libertarians dont need conservatives to advance liberty.

Adam Kokesh put out a nice video on calling out conservatives hypocrites who opposed gun control but support the government jackboot in other areas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIBwRhz0uFc

THE WASHINGTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND DOWNEAST COMMUNITY HOSPITAL ARE TAKING BACK UNWANTED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS APRIL 30 AT HANNAFORD SUPER MARKET

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Machias Maine– On April 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the Washington County Sheriff's along with DownEast Community Hospital ] and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. Bring your medications to Hannaford Super Market US Route one Machias, The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

Last September, Americans turned in 242,000 pounds—121 tons—of prescription drugs at nearly 4,100 sites operated by the DEA and more than 3,000 state and local law enforcement partners.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
Four days after last fall’s event, Congress passed the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them. The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances. DEA has begun drafting regulations to implement the Act, a process that can take as long as 24 months. Until new regulations are in place, local law enforcement agencies like The Washington County Sheriff's Office and the DEA will continue to hold prescription drug take-back events every few months.


Sheriff Doniie Smith
Washington County Sheriff's Office

L.A. Times Excludes Cause of Cabin Fire At Dorner Standoff

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Source: LA Times




"The gunfire gave way to a tense standoff. Mountain residents locked their doors and hunkered down.

Within hours, authorities moved in on the cabin. The fire broke out, setting off ammunition that had apparently been inside. On TV, viewers saw only the orange flames and curls of black smoke."





That's it. That's all they give you.

The fire just........broke out.



Ya know....like they do!!!!

"Burn that fucking house down!"






Check out how USA Today is spinning the case.



Deputies did not intentionally burn down the Southern California mountain cabin where fugitive Christopher Dorner apparently made his deadly last stand Tuesday, the San Bernardino County sheriff said Wednesday.

"We did not intentionally burn down that cabin to get Mr. Dorner out," Sheriff John McMahon said at an afternoon news conference.


Sorry, but "burn that fucking house down" sure sounds like intent to me.

Prosecutor Says Hidden Microphones Weren't Recording

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Source: AP


The May 2012 arraignment in the long-stalled war crimes case was an unruly 13-hour spectacle, drawn out as the defendants refused to use the court translation system, ignored the judge and stood up to pray in court. The defendants sat out portions of this week's session. When they were in court, they remained largely silent. The lead defendant, self-professed terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, sat quietly at his defense table, wearing a military-style camouflage vest over his white robe.

This week's hearings largely dealt with fears by members of the five defense teams that the U.S. government has been eavesdropping on their private conversations, violating the core legal principal of attorney-client privilege.

Military officials confirmed that meeting rooms used by the attorneys have microphones apparently disguised to look like smoke detectors. They said, however, that the devices have no recording capability and have not been used to monitor private meetings that prisoners have with their lawyers or the Red Cross. Prosecutors agreed on Thursday to disconnect the devices.

Bormann and Mohammed attorney David Nevin said the defense is continuing to investigate whether there has been any eavesdropping, which they said undermines their ability to represent their clients and under some circumstances could be illegal.

The chief prosecutor, Army Brig. Gen Mark Martins, said that after looking into the matter and hearing this week's testimony he is confident that there wasn't any monitoring of the attorney's conversations with the defendants. "It's not happening and we can go forward," he told reporters after the hearing adjourned.

_____________


I'm not so confident, myself.

One bizarre thing about following this particular story is that I haven't been able to print out any of Arun Rath's excellent reports from the PBS website.


What happens is, I print it, and gibberish comes out of the computer. The headline prints fine, and the rest is gibberish.

So, what I do, is I copy and paste it into our metro browser here, and then print it.

This has happened with all of Arun Rath's reports so far on the PBS site.

I was able to print out one of his reports from Public Radio Intenational's site for The World.

A colleague said, "You've got to get off of whatever list you're on."

YouTubers Don't Like What Happened to Dorner Either

To contact us Click HERE
It's not just me.
I'm not alone in wondering what the fuck.



Alan Middleton 6 days ago
These fucking cops mistook 2 asian ladies in a different car than dorners for dorner, now they casually decide they are gonna burn down someones cabin that is not their own. YOU CANNOT FUCKING DO THAT. They dont have a positive ID on the suspect, and these fucking cops assume its OK to act like this, and there are people that think its ok. Its not. Cops are our Civil Servants not the fucking Gestapo doing whatever they want at will cause a few of theirs got killed and exposed.

IEatSand22890 6 days ago
Yeah enough is enough god damnit. The entire American population is being taken for a bunch of fucking idiots. This is what tactics your government is reverting to people. Instead of helping you keep your house, educating your children, or start to fix the economy they are roasting people alive without due process and trying to take your guns. Wake the fuck up. It's only going to get worse. Don't be a fool.

Cindy BarPo 6 days ago
Just wondering, where you this upset when Janet Reno and Bill Clinton ordered the compounded with 27 children in be burned to the ground.
They never murdered anyone, and were burned alive.

IEatSand22890 3 hours ago
Are you talking about Waco? Or however it's spelled. If so, then yes because it was an atrocity.



However:


Callepunk0 5 hours ago
I hope he was crying like a bitch, and burned alive.

One of America's "Most Urgent Traffic Safety Issues"

To contact us Click HERE
I'm not popular when I suggest to people that cell phone talking should be banned altogether.

And I do understand that when you're sitting in traffic and things aren't moving, you sort of want to reach out to someone and not be alone.

However----at high speeds, it should definitely be banned. I have absolutely no question in my mind about that----based on 18 years of traffic reporting and over two decades of driving, much of that in L.A.



Source: National Safety Council, NSC Journal of Safety Research



National Safety Council President & CEO Janet Froetscher identified cell phone use while driving as one of America’s most urgent traffic safety issues. In January the NSC became the first national organization to call for a total ban on that activity, based on scientific estimates that cell phone use while driving contributes to 6 percent of crashes, or 636,000 crashes, 330,000 injuries, 12,000 serious injuries, and 2,600 deaths each year. The same research put the annual financial toll of cell phone-related crashes at $43 billion.

“Our nation has reached a point where we estimate more than 100 million people are engaging in this dangerous behavior daily,” Froetscher said, adding that the issue is not the type of phone a driver uses, rather it is the distraction caused by the conversation. “Hands-free devices do not make cell phones any safer. Several studies indicate that the principle risk is the cognitive distraction. Studies also show that driving while talking on a cell phone is extremely dangerous and puts drivers at a four-times greater crash risk.”

THE WASHINGTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND DOWNEAST COMMUNITY HOSPITAL ARE TAKING BACK UNWANTED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS APRIL 30 AT HANNAFORD SUPER MARKET

To contact us Click HERE
Machias Maine– On April 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the Washington County Sheriff's along with DownEast Community Hospital ] and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. Bring your medications to Hannaford Super Market US Route one Machias, The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

Last September, Americans turned in 242,000 pounds—121 tons—of prescription drugs at nearly 4,100 sites operated by the DEA and more than 3,000 state and local law enforcement partners.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
Four days after last fall’s event, Congress passed the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them. The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances. DEA has begun drafting regulations to implement the Act, a process that can take as long as 24 months. Until new regulations are in place, local law enforcement agencies like The Washington County Sheriff's Office and the DEA will continue to hold prescription drug take-back events every few months.


Sheriff Doniie Smith
Washington County Sheriff's Office

Prosecutor Says Hidden Microphones Weren't Recording

To contact us Click HERE
Source: AP


The May 2012 arraignment in the long-stalled war crimes case was an unruly 13-hour spectacle, drawn out as the defendants refused to use the court translation system, ignored the judge and stood up to pray in court. The defendants sat out portions of this week's session. When they were in court, they remained largely silent. The lead defendant, self-professed terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, sat quietly at his defense table, wearing a military-style camouflage vest over his white robe.

This week's hearings largely dealt with fears by members of the five defense teams that the U.S. government has been eavesdropping on their private conversations, violating the core legal principal of attorney-client privilege.

Military officials confirmed that meeting rooms used by the attorneys have microphones apparently disguised to look like smoke detectors. They said, however, that the devices have no recording capability and have not been used to monitor private meetings that prisoners have with their lawyers or the Red Cross. Prosecutors agreed on Thursday to disconnect the devices.

Bormann and Mohammed attorney David Nevin said the defense is continuing to investigate whether there has been any eavesdropping, which they said undermines their ability to represent their clients and under some circumstances could be illegal.

The chief prosecutor, Army Brig. Gen Mark Martins, said that after looking into the matter and hearing this week's testimony he is confident that there wasn't any monitoring of the attorney's conversations with the defendants. "It's not happening and we can go forward," he told reporters after the hearing adjourned.

_____________


I'm not so confident, myself.

One bizarre thing about following this particular story is that I haven't been able to print out any of Arun Rath's excellent reports from the PBS website.


What happens is, I print it, and gibberish comes out of the computer. The headline prints fine, and the rest is gibberish.

So, what I do, is I copy and paste it into our metro browser here, and then print it.

This has happened with all of Arun Rath's reports so far on the PBS site.

I was able to print out one of his reports from Public Radio Intenational's site for The World.

A colleague said, "You've got to get off of whatever list you're on."

YouTubers Don't Like What Happened to Dorner Either

To contact us Click HERE
It's not just me.
I'm not alone in wondering what the fuck.



Alan Middleton 6 days ago
These fucking cops mistook 2 asian ladies in a different car than dorners for dorner, now they casually decide they are gonna burn down someones cabin that is not their own. YOU CANNOT FUCKING DO THAT. They dont have a positive ID on the suspect, and these fucking cops assume its OK to act like this, and there are people that think its ok. Its not. Cops are our Civil Servants not the fucking Gestapo doing whatever they want at will cause a few of theirs got killed and exposed.

IEatSand22890 6 days ago
Yeah enough is enough god damnit. The entire American population is being taken for a bunch of fucking idiots. This is what tactics your government is reverting to people. Instead of helping you keep your house, educating your children, or start to fix the economy they are roasting people alive without due process and trying to take your guns. Wake the fuck up. It's only going to get worse. Don't be a fool.

Cindy BarPo 6 days ago
Just wondering, where you this upset when Janet Reno and Bill Clinton ordered the compounded with 27 children in be burned to the ground.
They never murdered anyone, and were burned alive.

IEatSand22890 3 hours ago
Are you talking about Waco? Or however it's spelled. If so, then yes because it was an atrocity.



However:


Callepunk0 5 hours ago
I hope he was crying like a bitch, and burned alive.

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center: Billing Nightmares Never End

To contact us Click HERE
The Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center handles the billing for my doctor.

The billing has been such a nightmare that I have actually skipped my visits in recent years. I know I should not do this, but I get to where I just cannot stand dealing with the constant baloney of their billing system. I actually have the collection agency ON TAPE telling me my bill is in the clear---and they continue, and continue, to send bills to my house.

I wrote about this in my own Yelp review, and looking at other reviews just now, found this one. It's very informative.

It shows it isn't just me.


Source: Yelp


Marion W. wrote:



**** This review is based off of Medical Billing not the medical treatment received!!!!

I am writing this review after one year of attempts to fix "billing" issues stemmed from services from health care provided for my then five year old daughter.
Prior to visiting UCLA I received preauthorization from my insurance company and determined that UCLA was in network. I work in benefits and ensured that all cost and expenses were determined prior to the visits. As I do not live in California I wanted to be 100% prepared to pay any cost associated to ensure my daughter received the best medical care to treat her epilepsy. Each visit should only cost $20.00.
At the time of treatment I paid all expenses prior to leaving. Several months after completing treatments the bills from UCLA began trickling in. Four separate bills ranging from $500-$900.00 began coming in the mail. Each time I received a bill I was told that the bill was sent to me in error. At first I accepted that as people make errors, however the bills did not stop.

The same bills would be resent. I then called and spoke to a manager in the billing department. Her response made me worried for others that are not savvy in benefits.

I was being billed for the amount that the insurance company refused to pay. After informing her that UCLA is an In Network provider and they are contracted with my insurance company and that it is ILLEGAL to bill patients the difference I was told "Oh, this is an error."

I was informed by the manager that their billing system is inadequate and unable to tell the difference between what is owed and what is not owed due to the insurance company. The system just generates bills and sends to patients. She informed me that his is an ongoing problem and has been for years. They are hopeful to get a new system. I then asked them about the people that do not know and pay the bill, would you or someone in your department see that the amount should have not been paid would reimburse them the amount? She said "No, there is no way to find this out". I then asked if I or others simply ignored the bill, would we be sent to collections? Answer:" YES"!

UCLA is billing people illegally and hiding behind their bad system. People are paying bills that they do not owe and people are being sent to collections for bills they are not responsible for. This is unethical and fraudulent.

Around June 2012, I filed a formal complaint against them through my insurance company. I received a prompt reply and apology then too.

Yesterday January 8, 2013 I received another bill from UCLA for $848.13. I called and was told "Oops, you should not have received this bill. It was an error within our billing system." When will this end?

Jon Rappoport on the Federal Brain Mapping Project

To contact us Click HERE
Jon Rappoport did it again. Source: JonRappoport.wordpress.com

He keeps doing it-------writing.



And I'm just really, really glad for that.


Here he writes about the federal plan to map the brain.




Image Source: StarringScarlett.com





......Most people will shrug off the federal brain mapping project as a promising development. “Sure, sounds good.”



Does it? Does a future, up the road, in which all brains are monitored for “problematic activity” sound like a humanitarian system?



Does it suit your personal view of life, soul, spirit, freedom?



Consider this quote from neurologist VS Ramachandran. Read it carefully:



“How can a three-pound mass of jelly that you can hold in your palm imagine angels, contemplate the meaning of infinity, and even question its own place in the cosmos? Especially awe inspiring is the fact that any single brain, including yours, is made up of atoms that were forged in the hearts of countless, far-flung stars billions of years ago. These particles drifted for eons and light-years until gravity and change brought them together here, now. These atoms now form a conglomerate- your brain- that can not only ponder the very stars that gave it birth but can also think about its own ability to think and wonder about its own ability to wonder. With the arrival of humans, it has been said, the universe has suddenly become conscious of itself. This, truly, it the greatest mystery of all.”



No, the greater mystery is how a scientist can believe the brain alone is really capable of all these things—the brain that is nothing but atoms in motion.



Here’s another statement from a well-known neuroscientist, David Eagleman:



“Imagine for a moment that we are nothing but the product of billions of years of molecules coming together and ratcheting up through natural selection, that we are composed only of highways of fluids and chemicals sliding along roadways within billions of dancing cells, that trillions of synaptic conversations hum in parallel, that this vast egglike fabric of micron-thin circuitry runs algorithms undreamt of in modern science, and that these neural programs give rise to our decision making, loves, desires, fears, and aspirations. To me, that understanding would be a numinous [spiritual] experience, better than anything ever proposed in anyone’s holy text.”



It might be a numinous experience if it were true. But it isn’t. The brain, composed of tiny particles, isn’t producing our decision- making or our greatest thoughts. It can’t. There is nothing about atoms that allows for those grand realities.



For the numinous experience, we need spirit, psyche, mind, soul.



And these two neuroscientists I’ve just quoted? They’re the good guys. They’re the people within that community who even try (wrongheadedly) to make something poetic out of the brain. The overwhelming majority of their colleagues are mechanics, obsessed with tinkering and tweaking and derailing and re-channeling brain activity.



Into their hands, the federal government has just dropped the task of mapping everything that goes on inside our skulls—as a prelude to changing it.



These scientists are, despite their education, Luddites of consciousness. Instead of studying the great works of human history, the art and literature and invention, and trying to grasp our greater non-material faculties, neuroscientists jump to the naked assumption that it all proceeds from the brain.



They believe it must be so. They then dedicate themselves to mapping and charting.



Who is the real threat, the real danger?



They are.



If any monitoring should be done, it should be of them.





Interestingly enough,
I can neither comment on, nor "like" this article by Jon Rappoport.

He recently wrote that Facebook would not allow his articles to be shared.

Pretty subversive guy, talking sense over here like subversive people sometimes do.
Can't be having any of that!!!

Riverside County Ag Trail: Celebrating California Agricultural Riches

To contact us Click HERE
Ag Trail Promoting Locally Grown Products to Debut Friday

Supervisor John J. Benoit will be joined by leaders in agriculture to formally launch the Riverside County Ag Trail, the first of its kind in Southern California, to promote the county’s agricultural industry. Agriculture contributes $4.33 billion and nearly 30,000 jobs to the Riverside County economy. Along with the launch of the Ag Trail Web site, Supervisor Benoit will unveil an attractive road sign outside Madison Street Produce, a fruit stand among more than 100 stops along the trail where residents, consumers and agri-tourists can purchase locally grown agricultural products


When: 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 22

Where: Madison Street Produce
Madison Street and Highway 111, Indio

Capitol Confidential » NYSUT supports smooth ride on pension financing

To contact us Click HERE
    The teachers union supports Governor Cuomo's pension smoothing, and that's no surprise as the smoothing takes away any immediate need to make unpopular decisions to cut positions or deny raises.
      What's clear is that there will be winners and losers under the smoothing proposal. Those who opt in versus those who tough it out for five or six years until contribution rates come down.
Capitol Confidential » NYSUT supports smooth ride on pension financing

Lisa Pistolis Hooter's Waitress and Party Girl Charged With Murder In DUI Case

To contact us Click HERE
The crash that killed a man on Interstate 526 in Charleston was caused by a woman who was driving while intoxicated and while she was out on bail awaiting trial on a previous DUI charge.

Lisa Pistolis, 25, of Gemstone Boulevard, Hanahan, South Carolina is a Hooter's waitress and well known local party girl.


Police and media reports state that she was driving eastbound about 4:30 p.m. Sunday on I-526 when the Mustang she was driving drifted off the roadway into the grassy median in the center, North Charleston police spokesman Spencer Pryor said.

Pistolis tried to get back on the road but hit a sport utiltity vehicle.  The SUV also flipped several times in the wreck. Pistolis was charged with felony DUI involving death and felony DUI with great bodily injuries.

She was reportedly driving the same Mustang when she was arrested last year.

Some of the dozens of her FaceBook photos that show her party hard lifestyle.

Monday Odds and Ends - Gun Control Addition

To contact us Click HERE
CMPD Captain Adkins - The Civil Service Board hearing for CMPD Captain Chuck Adkins is back on the calender for next week February 25-27.



We'll keep you posted as the exact time and day next week and which mainstream media types will be in attendance for the "open hearing".

ShotSpotter - A week ago we told you about Chief Monroe's plan to expand ShotSpotter in Charlotte. We noted that ShotSpotter would soon be expanded to Grier Heights and the Eastway areas of Charlotte. Over the weekend mainstream media picked up on the story, yet failed to ask the obvious questions.

How has ShotSpotter performed uptown? Where are the numbers, a case study, a report?

When the system was installed in was sold to City Council as being paid for by DNC funds, and that it would be on a trial basis. Now it has suddenly become an annual expense.

Then there are the costs, a reported $10,000.00 installation fee and $40,000 annual monitoring fee.  This is in addition to the $160,000.00 for the system already in place Uptown according to the local paper.

Real questions, but when asked, only Crickets.

Chief Monroe says he'll use the department's seizure funds. That magic pool of money that the department taps into without any oversight.

The Observer's story is here.

Mi Casa Es Su Casa - Chief Monroe apparently plans on having a sister city relationship with Juárez Mexico and the beleaguered city's police department.



Juárez is of course known as the murder capital of the world and as having one of Mexico's most corrupt police departments. So why would CMPD want to "hook up" with the Juárez PD? Let's hope this isn't another Spanish speaking officer recruiting idea from Chief Monroe.

Because as they say south of the border: "Que es una locura!"

The Run On Ammunition - May not be entirely consumer driven, at least that is the thinking behind a report by Andrew Malcolm.

While WBTV news crews were filming empty shelves at Hyatt's Gun Shop in Charlotte today, Andrew's report citing massive purchases by Homeland Security and get this the "Social Security Administration" has received little attention outside of blogland.

"In a puzzling, unexplained development, the Obama administration has been buying and storing vast amounts of ammunition in recent months, with the Department of Homeland Security just placing another order for an additional 21.6 million rounds.

Several other agencies of the federal government also began buying large quantities of bullets last year. The Social Security Administration, for instance, not normally considered on the frontlines of anything but dealing with seniors, explained that its purchase of millions of rounds was for special agents' required quarterly weapons qualifications. They must be pretty poor shots.

But DHS has been silent about its need for numerous orders of bullets in the multiple millions. Indeed, Examiner writer Ryan Keller points out Janet Napolitano's agency illegally redacted information from some ammunition solicitation forms following media inquiries.

According to one estimate, just since last spring DHS has stockpiled more than 1.6 billion bullets, mainly .40 caliber and 9mm. That's sufficient firepower to shoot every American about five times. Including illegal immigrants.

To provide some perspective, experts estimate that at the peak of the Iraq war American troops were firing around 5.5 million rounds per month. At that rate, DHS is armed now for a 24-year Iraq war.

Read More At IBD: http://news.investors.com/politics-andrew-malcolm/020813-643707-obama-homeland-security-vast-ammunition-purchases.htm#ixzz2LLSHKIQi
Follow us: @IBDinvestors on Twitter | InvestorsBusinessDaily on Facebook
The former LA Times Editor's take on ammo hording is here.

Lisa Pistolis Probable Cause Hearing

To contact us Click HERE
This afternoon Charleston County Magistrate James Gosnell determined that probable cause did exist and the Felony DUI case against Lisa Pistolis will move forward.

Lisa Pistolis, 24 Courtesy Charleston County Sheriff

Pistolis has remained behind bars since the January 27, accident that claimed the life of Serjei Cahuantzi ,35 of Charleston and seriously injured his passenger on I-525 in North Charleston.

Pistolis was not in court for today's hearing and was represented but her court appointed attorney Alica Penn.

During the hearing North Charleston Police Officer Jonathan Lawrence highlighted the facts, including that both vehicles were traveling east bound on 526 when Pistolis lost control and struck the Jeep driven by Cahuantzi. Cahuantzi died at the scene and his passenger was take to MUSC with internal injuries. Pistolis was also transported and administered sobriety tests.

NCPD Officer Lawrence stated the Pistolis acknowledged drinking "one beer" at Gene's Haufbrau in West Ashley. Lawrence was asked by Assistant Solicitor Larry Todd if Pistolis seemed remorseful his response a simple "no". According to Mr. Todd additional witnesses stated that Pistolis shared two pitchers of mimosas and beer while at the bar.

Cedar's Take: Tragic event all around, and one has to wonder why Pistolis has not been able to raise enough to secure the $73,000.00 bail or why Pistolis' public defender has not requested a reduction in the bail amount.

Even if the facts don't play out as the state would like, this young attractive woman has ruined her life. I'm sure she never thought she would find herself behind bars looking at 20 year sentence. The truth is if you drink and drive this can happen to you and if you are in an accident, this will happen to you.

Fact is she shouldn't have had the first beer. Had her answer been "I have not had anything to drink" she would be at home right now. It is that simple. You drink you don't drive. Period.

Hat tip to Andrew Knapp for tweeting today's court hearing from which much of the above was derived.

A Charlotte Streetcar Named Desire

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When Tennessee Williams penned his play (A Streetcar Named Desire) in 1947 he set it against the backdrop of changing America, and a clash of cultures. Much as what Charlotte is facing today, a changing city and as Mayor Foxx has pointed out a clash of cultures.


But as Williams' story unfolds the illusion of the principle character Blanche DuBois is exposed.

Charlotte's Mayor Foxx is a lot like Williams' Blanche:

"I don't want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic. I try to give that to people. I do misrepresent things. I don't tell truths. I tell what ought to be truth." Says Blanche Dubois in one scene.

I imagine mayor Foxx much had a deprived childhood, denied magic of that new toy train clicking around the family Christmas tree and this perhaps this is his redemption?

No doubt East Charlotte needs something magic, but you can't correct the sins of our fathers overnight. Misguided rezoning of the 1980's led to a decline in property values and the always spoken in hushed voices "white flight".

Changing demographics, brought on by declining rental rates caused by an over abundance of rental properties built in the 1980s and early 1990's caused the collapse of East Charlotte.

Charlotte needs to learn from her mistakes of the 1980s to insure the blight of East Charlotte stops and does not spread.

“Will it cost us something to build the city that we want to be?” Foxx has asked.

“Yes,” he said. “Pay now, not later. Let’s get it done and make this community what we can make it and
we’re going to be fine.”

I'm sure the city council on 1987 thought the same thing as they approved apartment complex after apartment complex on top of shopping centers and stripmalls.

But, I have yet to see a city study that seeks to understand what happened. How did the once vibrant Central and Albemarle Road area, turn into a wasteland of crime and violence, abandoned businesses and shopping centers?

I have not seen a study of what happened and no real plan beyond "If you build it they will come".

It may be that a Streetcar will help but at what expense to other areas of Charlotte?

The other end of Mayor Foxx's Streetcar Named Desire is West Charlotte or more correctly Beatties Ford Road.


If you drive from the Arena Transit Center toward the Rosa Parks Bus Depot the first thing you notice is most of the property that would front the streetcar is not revenue centric to the city.

Yesterday Charlotte business owner Rasheedah Hasan gave his input on the proposed streetcar during a meeting with West Charlotte residents.

Hasan said that while areas like the Beatties Ford road corridor are "attractive because of their diversity, they lack investors and opportunities for development."

(Cedar's take: Beatties Ford Road has diversity? Seriously?)

Lawanda Mayfield who supports the Streetcar told the group yesterday “Laying those tracks shows permanence. It shows that we’re serious about investment, transportation and infrastructure,”

“At the end of the day, it does take money to make those investments.”

But Mayfield like Mayor Foxx has no answer for where the revenue come from to support the operational expenses? Perhaps it will be magic?

The general theory is that revenue from ridership would not support the operating costs, but that reinvestment in the community would more than pay for the expense.

Except one glaring fault. Property along much of the West Charlotte Streetcar Route is property tax exempt.

Johnson C. Smith owns the property from Montgomery Street to Mill Road, nearly a half mile. Add to that Frazier Park and the I - 77 interchange, numerous churches and public property such as schools and community centers and you suddenly notice that the potential for development from the Arena Transportation Center to the Brookshire Expressway is not there!

In other words the first 2.5 miles of the west portion of the streetcar will have no economic benefit to the city or to the Beatties Ford Road community. The first 2.5 miles will remain pretty much as it is with the exception of magic steel tracks down the center of the street.

Before Charlotte goes on another wild spending spree we should have some direction. Yet in the past plans, be they transportation studies, or zoning have be tossed to the wind. City Council routinely caters to the whims of developers and special interests. Leaving gaps and holes in our communities.

The Streetcar may be Desireable, but does the Mayor's magic just create the what ought to be truth?

Public Rejects Mainstream Media Spin On Dorner

To contact us Click HERE
L.A. Times continues to print reports that Dorner was shooting at officers from the cabin.


But too many people heard the scanners, thanks to the Net, and they're not buying it. Word of mouth/twitter is challenging main stream media interpretations of this story, and that's a really, really good thing. A couple of comments from the L.A. Times page:



Barry Goldwater · Top Commenter

The LAPD, San Bernardino and Riverside County Sheriffs CONTINUE to Violate the CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
What happened to DUE Process?
What happened to upholding the 5th and 14th Amendment to the Constitution?
We have clear evidence they purposely burned that house down...we have their own words.
Ignoring Dorner, this was a government taking of these people's cabin/house.
They had NO RIGHT to burn those people's house!
The could have waited him out, brought in his mother to help negotiate him out, turned off all utilities and continued negotiating.
There was no need to burn the house down. But negotiating isn't as much entertainment or fun!!
These guys are childish idiots.
Reply · 30 · Unlike · Follow Post · 2 hours ago



Dan Kreutzer · Paducah Tilghman High School
not childish--demonic
Reply · 8 · Unlike · 2 hours ago



Paul Fitzgerald · Top Commenter · Works at Comedy Writer, Inventor, Photographer
Let's never forget this. 2 vehicles with non-threatening citizens were shot sending 2 women to the hospital and terrifying one man. All because they said it was mistaken identity.

How can they claim they shoot civilians mistakenly trying to shoot Dorner while saying they had no intention of killing him.

That's an admission that they wanted to kill citizens. (or evidence of a lie)
Reply · 5 · Like · 58 minutes ago

Prosecutor Says Hidden Microphones Weren't Recording

To contact us Click HERE
Source: AP


The May 2012 arraignment in the long-stalled war crimes case was an unruly 13-hour spectacle, drawn out as the defendants refused to use the court translation system, ignored the judge and stood up to pray in court. The defendants sat out portions of this week's session. When they were in court, they remained largely silent. The lead defendant, self-professed terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, sat quietly at his defense table, wearing a military-style camouflage vest over his white robe.

This week's hearings largely dealt with fears by members of the five defense teams that the U.S. government has been eavesdropping on their private conversations, violating the core legal principal of attorney-client privilege.

Military officials confirmed that meeting rooms used by the attorneys have microphones apparently disguised to look like smoke detectors. They said, however, that the devices have no recording capability and have not been used to monitor private meetings that prisoners have with their lawyers or the Red Cross. Prosecutors agreed on Thursday to disconnect the devices.

Bormann and Mohammed attorney David Nevin said the defense is continuing to investigate whether there has been any eavesdropping, which they said undermines their ability to represent their clients and under some circumstances could be illegal.

The chief prosecutor, Army Brig. Gen Mark Martins, said that after looking into the matter and hearing this week's testimony he is confident that there wasn't any monitoring of the attorney's conversations with the defendants. "It's not happening and we can go forward," he told reporters after the hearing adjourned.

_____________


I'm not so confident, myself.

One bizarre thing about following this particular story is that I haven't been able to print out any of Arun Rath's excellent reports from the PBS website.


What happens is, I print it, and gibberish comes out of the computer. The headline prints fine, and the rest is gibberish.

So, what I do, is I copy and paste it into our metro browser here, and then print it.

This has happened with all of Arun Rath's reports so far on the PBS site.

I was able to print out one of his reports from Public Radio Intenational's site for The World.

A colleague said, "You've got to get off of whatever list you're on."