Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Jay Carney’s Shocking Statement During Tense Exchange With Reporters: Newly Released White House Emails ‘Not About Benghazi’ | TheBlaze.com

Jay Carney’s Shocking Statement During Tense Exchange With Reporters: Newly Released White House Emails ‘Not About Benghazi’ | TheBlaze.com:
“The emails and the talking points were not about Benghazi,” Carney told reporters Wednesday. “They were about the general situation in the Muslim world where you saw, as you might recall, it was explicitly not about Benghazi, it was about the overall situation in the region, the Muslim world, where we saw protests outside of embassy facilities across the region.”



Quoting Winston Churchill Deemed Illegal In Britain

Quoting Winston Churchill Deemed Illegal In Britain:
"As the assault on free speech continues within the U.S., freedom-loving Americans can look at our forebears in England as a devastating harbinger of what rampant leftism can cause.
Paul Weston, a political candidate and chairman of Liberty GB Party, found out how limited speech has become in the country during an address he made last weekend in Hampshire."

New White House Emails Reveal Effort to Portray Benghazi Attack as Being ‘Rooted’ in an ‘Internet Video,’ Protect President’s Re-Election | TheBlaze.com

New White House Emails Reveal Effort to Portray Benghazi Attack as Being ‘Rooted’ in an ‘Internet Video,’ Protect President’s Re-Election | TheBlaze.com:
"Several top White House staffers, including political strategist David Plouffe and press secretary Jay Carney, were involved in these emails, some of which were circulated just a day before then-United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice appeared on television to blame the attacks on a YouTube video.
The “goal” going forward, one Rhodes email said, is “to underscore that these protests are rooted in [an] Internet video, and not a broader failure or policy.”

The 41 new Benghazi-related State Department documents released Tuesday show that Rice received her talking points directly from the highest reaches of Obama’s inner circle."

This'll be fun to watch-----Drew Sharp: OK, so Donald Sterling is gone; now it's up to NBA to diversify its ownership

Drew Sharp: OK, so Donald Sterling is gone; now it's up to NBA to diversify its ownership | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
They nailed a racist.
Congratulations.
Big whoop!
You took down a fool old enough and rich enough not to care about applying a filter when voicing his toxic thoughts.
But this is hardly an impressive victory in the bigger battle.
This was appeasement, nothing more than throwing activists still trapped in the civil rights scrums of the 1960s crumbs to quietly pacify them and con them into believing that everyone’s engaged in the same fight.
The NBA didn’t address the legitimate concerns of institutional racism within league ownership. 

Report: Tech CEOs Hiring Fewer Blacks, Latinos, Women Amid Amnesty Push

Report: Tech CEOs Hiring Fewer Blacks, Latinos, Women Amid Amnesty Push:
Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerburg has led the tech industry in aggressively pushing for amnesty legislation that the Congressional Budget Office determined would lower the wages of American workers, partly because the legislation would double or even triple the number of H1-B visas and other guest-worker permits. Doing so would make jobs that are already scarce for blacks, Latinos, and women in Silicon Valley even more so.
Kotkin cited a report in the San Jose Mercury News that found that the "unique diversity of Silicon Valley is not reflected in the region's tech workplaces—and the disparity is only growing worse," as blacks, Hispanics, and women employees are dwindling in the high-tech industry.

Prominent Anti-Gun Advocate Had a ‘Considerable Change in Demeanor’ When She Learned Who She Was Smiling Next to in This Picture | TheBlaze.com

Prominent Anti-Gun Advocate Had a ‘Considerable Change in Demeanor’ When She Learned Who She Was Smiling Next to in This Picture | TheBlaze.com:
"When prominent gun control advocate Shannon Watts was asked by a man to take a picture outside of the 2014 NRA convention in Indianapolis, she granted his request. What she clearly didn’t know was who the man really was.
Watts’ reportedly had a “considerable change in demeanor” after the picture was snapped and he revealed his identity. "

SEIU Membership Drops 80 Percent After Dues Skim Ends

SEIU Membership Drops 80 Percent After Dues Skim Ends [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
More than 44,000 home-based caregivers no longer are part of the SEIU Healthcare Michigan, according to federal reports filed by the union.

The workers previously were forced to pay dues or fees to the SEIU after the union orchestrated a scheme that took money from the Medicaid checks of the people the workers were caring for in homes across the state. The "dues skim" ended in 2013, but not before the SEIU took more than $34 million from the elderly and disabled across the state.

According to the union's LM-2 report filed with the U.S. Department of Labor, 44,347 home-based caregivers have opted to stay out of the union.

That number represents virtually all of the long-term home-based caregivers affected by the dues skim. 
It also is more than 80 percent of the 55,265 members the union claimed to have at the end on 2012. 

Don't let GM and it's union thieves lie to you------Government loss on GM bailout deeper than first thought, report finds

Government loss on GM bailout deeper than first thought, report finds | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
The U.S. government posted a deeper loss than initially recorded on the General Motors bailout, according to a government report released today.
Taxpayers lost $11.2 billion on the GM bailout, up from $10.3 billion the Treasury Department estimated when it sold its last GM shares on Dec. 9.
A Treasury Department auditor said the government had written off an $826-million “administrative claim” tied to the GM bailout on March 20.

Senate dems let it happen-----$10.10 wage bill set to die

$10.10 wage bill set to die | TheHill
Thune cited a Bloomberg poll showing 57 percent of the public views the potential loss of 500,000 jobs, a figure projected by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), as an unacceptable tradeoff for raising the minimum wage to a $10.10 hourly rate.
The CBO dealt a huge blow to the legislation, the centerpiece of the Democrats’ 2014 agenda, when it warned in February of its impact on jobs.
Senate Democratic aides dismissed the projection, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has worked for weeks to rally his caucus around the $10.10 wage threshold. Initially, Obama backed a hike to $9, then embraced the higher figure after being prodded by congressional Democrats.
Reid initially said the Senate would consider the bill in early March. Instead, it languished while a coalition of labor unions and liberal groups intensely lobbied centrist Democratic and Republican senators.
The impact of the lobbying effort on Republicans has been hampered by Obama’s low approval ratings. A Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday showed the president’s approval rating has fallen to 41 percent, a 5-point drop compared to March.
Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), one of the chamber’s most vulnerable incumbents, has said he doesn’t back the bill.
Centrists, such as Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Mary Landrieu (D-La.), questioned the details of the legislation, such as the $10.10 wage floor, the timing of its implementation and how it would affect workers who rely on tips. Other Democrats stopped short of embracing Harkin’s bill.

The Marijuana Debate: Time for Reefer Sanity

The Marijuana Debate: Time for Reefer Sanity
Don’t believe the hype: marijuana legalization poses too many risks to public health and public safety. Based on almost two decades of research, community-based work, and policy practice across three presidential administrations, my new book “Reefer Sanity” discusses some widely held myths about marijuana:
Myth No. 1: “Marijuana is harmless and non-addictive”
No, marijuana is not as dangerous as cocaine or heroin, but calling it harmless or non-addictive denies very clear science embraced by every major medical association that has studied the issue. Scientists now know that the average strength of today’s marijuana is some 5–6 times what it was in the 1960s and 1970s, and some strains are upwards of 1020 times stronger than in the past—especially if one extracts THC through a butane process. This increased potency has translated to more than 400,000 emergency room visits every year due to things like acute psychotic episodes and panic attacks.
Mental health researchers are also noting the significant marijuana connection with schizophrenia, and educators are seeing how persistent marijuana use can blunt academic motivation and significantly reduce IQ by up to eight points, according to a very large recent study in New Zealand. Add to these side-effects new research now finding that even casual marijuana use can result in observable differences in brain structure, specifically parts of the brain that regulate emotional processing, motivation and reward. Indeed, marijuana use hurts our ability to learn and compete in a competitive global workplace.
Additionally, marijuana users pose dangers on the road, despite popular myth. According to the British Medical Journal, marijuana intoxication doubles your risk of a car crash.

The Massive Amount of Weapons Meant for Libyan Rebels That Actually Ended Up in Terrorists’ Hands | TheBlaze.com

The Massive Amount of Weapons Meant for Libyan Rebels That Actually Ended Up in Terrorists’ Hands | TheBlaze.com:
"A U.S. businesswoman who had access to senior Libyan officials and provided information as a paid informant for the CIA and FBI, said she was asked to provide intelligence on various rebel leaders and their actions while she was conducting business in Libya. Speaking to TheBlaze TV’s For the Record and going only by the pseudonym Annie to protect her identity, she said the Obama administration was aware that $500 million of the $1 billion in weapons delivered in shipments from weapons dealers in the Persian Gulf were being taken by members of Al Qaeda.
Current and former U.S. officials intimately familiar with operations in Libya at the time confirmed Annie’s statement to TheBlaze.

Annie said one of the benefactors was Al Qaeda leader Ahmed Abu Khattalah, who is now wanted by the U.S. government."

In Lansing today, Orr to lawmakers: We're counting on $350M in state funding

In Lansing today, Orr to lawmakers: We're counting on $350M in state funding | Crain's Detroit Business: "Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr met with state lawmakers in Lansing Tuesday to urge approval of $350 million in state funds to help bring the city out of bankruptcy.

 Orr told reporters he felt the “grand bargain” — $816 million in pension contributions pledged by private foundations and the Detroit Institute of Arts, as well as the $350 million from the state — was in “very good condition,” and that he hopes a deal can be reached sooner rather than later, because the state funding is built into the plan of adjustment.

 “We’re counting on this,” Orr said."

How about a ‘renewed call’ for the White House to stop spreading false information about campus sexual assault?

How about a ‘renewed call’ for the White House to stop spreading false information about campus sexual assault? | AEIdeas:
"In a January 2014 report titled “Rape and Sexual Assault: A Renewed Call to Action” (which led to the creation of the Task Force to Protect Students From Sexual Assault headed by Biden), the White House Council on Women and Girls made the following two statements:
1. Sexual assault is a particular problem on college campuses:1 in 5 women has been sexually assaulted while in college.
2. Reporting rates for campus sexual assault are also very low: on average only 12% of student victims report the assault to law enforcement. But there’s a big problem here.

Taken together, those two claims above from the White House, if both are accurate, mean that nowhere near 1 in 5 women are sexually assaulted while in college.

As I reported in January on CD after the release of the White House’s “renewed call to action” report:
The problem is that the two sets of numbers the White House uses don’t work together. 

If you look at virtually any university in America and take the number of reported sexual assaults, and use that number in conjunction with the White House’s under-reporting percentage, you don’t get one-in-five. Nowhere near.
Do the math yourself."

The West Prepares: These Are All NATO Aircraft Deployments In Response To The Ukraine Crisis

The West Prepares: These Are All NATO Aircraft Deployments In Response To The Ukraine Crisis | Zero Hedge:

OooooKay.....Demand is so great they need to give 'em more money?-------Demand for Detroit housing leads to expanded cash incentive program

Demand for Detroit housing leads to expanded cash incentive program | Detroit Free Press | freep.com: "Strong demand among professional-class workers to live in or around downtown Detroit has led to an expansion in the boundaries of a program offering cash incentives for certain employees to move to the city.
Midtown Detroit announced Monday that the boundaries for the Live Midtown program are now extended to the historic Boston-Edison district.
The expansion applies only to a purchase incentive — $20,000 toward the purchase of a primary residence.
The boundaries for the rent incentive — $2,500 toward rent for a first year in Detroit and $1,000 for a second — will stay within Midtown and downtown."

Why is the Pentagon Destroying $1 Billion Worth of Ammunition?

Why is the Pentagon Destroying $1 Billion Worth of Ammunition?:
"The Obama Administration’s love of wasteful spending is, perhaps, only equal to their hatred for all things firearm-related. For the last few years, multiple sites have reported about the federal government’s purchase of millions of rounds of ammunition. However, the Pentagon now plans to destroy $1.2 billion worth of ammunition simply because they do not keep adequate purchase records.

Or so they say…"

History for April 30

History for April 30 - On-This-Day.com
Happy Birthday! Kirsten Dunst, Willie Nelson, Burt Young


0030 - Jesus of Nazareth was crucified. 


1789 - George Washington took office as first elected U.S. president. 


1803 - The U.S. purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million. 


1900 - Casey Jones was killed while trying to save the runaway train "Cannonball Express." 


1943 - The British submarine HMS Seraph dropped 'the man who never was,' a dead man the British planted with false invasion plans, into the Mediterranean off the coast of Spain. 


1945 - Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun committed suicide. They had been married for one day. One week later Germany surrendered unconditionally. 


1993 - Monica Seles was stabbed in the back during a tennis match in Hamburg, Germany. The man called himself a fan of second- ranked Steffi Graf. He was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm and received a suspended sentence. 

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Exclusive: Kerry Warns Israel Could Become ‘An Apartheid State’ - The Daily Beast

Exclusive: Kerry Warns Israel Could Become ‘An Apartheid State’ - The Daily Beast:
"It wasn't the only controversial comment on the Middle East that Kerry made during his remarks to the Trilateral Commission, a recording of which was obtained by The Daily Beast. Kerry also repeated his warning that a failure of Middle East peace talks could lead to a resumption of Palestinian violence against Israeli citizens. He suggested that a change in either the Israeli or Palestinian leadership could make achieving a peace deal more feasible. "

Well, This is Awkward: Watch Americans Fail Miserably Trying to Answer Some of the Easiest Questions on the U.S. Citizenship Test | Video | TheBlaze.com

Well, This is Awkward: Watch Americans Fail Miserably Trying to Answer Some of the Easiest Questions on the U.S. Citizenship Test | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Who is the vice president of the United States?
That’s just one of the many questions immigrants might face when they take the civics test for U.S. citizenship — and if you think most Americans can easily answer, you might want to think again.
A new video posted online last week by the Immigrant Archive Project features 15 randomly selected individuals attempting to answer some of the easiest questions on the test.

Only one passed."

When the Famous Comedian Who Once Said ‘I Really Love Barack Obama’ Says This About Common Core, It Makes News | TheBlaze.com

When the Famous Comedian Who Once Said ‘I Really Love Barack Obama’ Says This About Common Core, It Makes News | TheBlaze.com:
"Louis C.K., recently named “America’s undisputed king of comedy” by GQ, seemingly came out against Common Core and standardized testing on Monday. He also found support from people across the Internet.
“My kids used to love math,” the comedian tweeted on Monday. “Now it makes them cry. Thanks standardized testing and common core!”"

No money for potholes, but plenty for "welcome to our potholes" center-------MDOT building $5.5M Port Huron welcome center

MDOT building $5.5M Port Huron welcome center | Crain's Detroit Business:
"PORT HURON — Michigan Department of Transportation crews plan to begin building a new $5.5 million Port Huron welcome center this week.
The agency says the 7,200-square-foot facility is expected to be completed in early summer 2015."

How to Pass a Detroit Bailout the Majority Party Opposes

How to Pass a Detroit Bailout the Majority Party Opposes [Mackinac Center]
Republicans hold majorities of 59 to 51 in the House and 26 to 12 in the Senate, yet none of them represent Detroit.
Given these obstacles, Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposal earmarking $350 million in state money to Detroit over 20 years must be “dead on arrival,” right?
Not hardly.
In fact, even though it won’t solve Detroit’s fiscal or infrastructure problems, and diverts money that could be used for critical needs elsewhere, (like filling potholes; MDOT estimates it costs $20 to fix a pothole, so that $350 million could fix 17.5 million potholes statewide), the bailout has a good chance of being approved thanks to a tactic I’ll call the “budget shuffle.”
Here’s how it works:
Every year the Michigan Legislature passes an annual budget authorizing billions of dollars of spending.
Total spending this year is around $51.3 billion, and the governor has proposed $52 billion in the next fiscal year (which begins Oct. 1).
Read the rest at link

13 Worst Predictions Made on Earth Day, 1970 | CNS News

13 Worst Predictions Made on Earth Day, 1970 | CNS News:
"In 1970, the first Earth Day was celebrated - okay, "celebrated" doesn't capture the funereal tone of the event. The events (organized in part by then hippie and now convicted murderer Ira Einhorn) predicted death, destruction and disease unless we did exactly as progressives commanded.
Behold the coming apocalypse as predicted on and around Earth Day, 1970:"


Even a few extra days didn't help their claims.

Hot Trailer: Dinesh D'Souza's 'America'

Hot Trailer: Dinesh D'Souza's 'America' - Deadline.com
"Having made the second-highest-grossing political documentary of all time, the team behind 2016: Obama’s America is now, as promised, following up with America.
Sending up some fireworks of his own to rival the ones 2016 generated, producer-writer and kind-of host Dinesh D’Souza says of his new documentary.
“We answer the central moral challenge of America’s critics, which is that America’s greatness is based on theft, plunder and oppression.”
Listen for other red-button phrases from interviewees describing the USA as “the new evil empire” and a “predatory colonial power” as well as referring to Mount Rushmore as “a symbol of oppression and genocide to our people.” 
Director John Sullivan’s film comes out two years after its predecessors — hitting theaters on the Fourth of July.
Here’s the new trailer. which was first unveiled tonight on Fox News Channel’s The Kelly File:"


Repeating Inaccurate Claim About School Funding Does Not Make It True

Images from 
Repeating Inaccurate Claim About School Funding Does Not Make It TrueRepeating Inaccurate Claim About School Funding Does Not Make It True [Michigan Capitol Confidential]:
Except, according to state data, neither statement Schauer made April 23 was accurate.
The Oakland Press reported Schauer's claims of a reduction in spending on K-12 education without challenging them.
"Public education has been cut dramatically, it's been systematically privatized," said Schauer, walking alongside running mate Lisa Brown, Oakland County's clerk.
"What I've seen here at (West Bloomfield High School) is amazing.
They're doing more with less, they've felt the state budget cuts, but there are great students, incredible teachers that are motivated and highly trained and we need to support them more."
Overall, state and federal funding for K-12 education has increased from $12.7 billion in 2011-12 to $13.4 billion in 2013-14, according to the Senate Fiscal Agency
State dollars spent on K-12 education have increased every year Gov. Rick Snyder has been in office, going from $11.01 billion in 2011-12 and $11.21 billion in 2012-13 to $11.6 billion in 2013-14, according to the Senate Fiscal Agency.
And, according to state financial documents, the West Bloomfield School district receives about $357 more per student this school year than it did in 2010-11, which was Gov. Jennifer Granholm's last budget.
The West Bloomfield School District has lost just under 800 students since 2010-11.

State pension funds allow for 13th check

State pension funds allow for 13th check | Lansing State Journal | lansingstatejournal.com
State laws that provide for — and in certain circumstances require — payment of the 13th check remain on the books.
Michigan’s Office of Retirement Services has not paid such a bonus to state government retirees since 2001 or to school retirees since 2002 and “does not expect to issue a 13th check in the foreseeable future,” said Kurt Weiss, a spokesman for the state’s Department of Technology, Management and Budget.
However, “there are no active plans right now to amend or repeal the legislation” providing for the 13th checks, Weiss told the Detroit Free Press.
That’s a mistake, even if relatively few retirees are eligible to receive the checks if and when they are issued, said Steve Harry of Lansing, a former employee of the Office of Retirement Systems who writes a blog about public policy issues and has researched the 13th check issue.
“It’s a crazy idea: 
Pensioners get a bonus when a strong stock market results in big gains for the pension fund, but they don’t suffer when stocks are down,” Harry said. 
“It is a great deal for them — not so great for the taxpayers who are forced to make up the difference when those pension funds are short.”
The state “should make it clear that there’s nothing like that any more — at all.”

Security holes in power grid have federal officials scrambling | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times

Security holes in power grid have federal officials scrambling | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times: “There are a lot of people going through various stages of denial” about how easily terrorists, or anyone, could disrupt the power grid, he said. “If I could write a tool that does this, you can be sure a nation state or someone with more resources could.”
In Congress, the vulnerability of the power grid has emerged as among the most pressing domestic security concerns. It is also among the most vexing."

This will bring in the tourists!----With higher parking fines looming, Detroit plans to spend up to $8 million repairing broken meters

With higher parking fines looming, Detroit plans to spend up to $8 million repairing broken meters | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
If you’ve parked in downtown Detroit often enough, you’ve probably pulled up to a broken meter.
City officials estimate that about half of the 3,404 parking meters are broken at any given time.
But that could change soon:
The city is considering spending up to $8 million to fix the meters.
The repairs are a high priority since the city announced this month thattickets for an expired meter would more than double, to $45.

Societal collapse----Highland Park in financial emergency, Snyder says

Highland Park in financial emergency, Snyder says | Crain's Detroit Business:

"Gov. Rick Snyder has confirmed that a financial emergency exists in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park.

The Highland Park City Council has seven days to select one of four options to deal with the problem.

....... Highland Park owed about $19 million as of January, including $18 million to Detroit for water and sewer services.

State-appointed emergency managers are in charge in Detroit, Allen Park, Flint, Hamtramck and several school districts."

Super deal----Kindle - Best-Selling Ereader - Only $49

Kindle - Best-Selling Ereader - Only $4


Alaskan Polar Bears Threatened…By Too Much Spring Ice

Alaskan Polar Bears Threatened…By Too Much Spring Ice | CNS News
Five meters of ice– about 16 feet thick - is threatening the survival of polar bears in the Southern Beaufort Sea region along Alaska’s Arctic coast, according to Dr. Susan J. Crockford, an evolutionary biologist in British Columbia who has studied polar bears for most of her 35-year career.
That’s because the thick ice ridges could prevent ringed seals, the bears’ major prey, from creating breathing holes they need to survive in the frigid waters, Crockford told CNSNews.com.

U.S., UK advise avoiding Internet Explorer until bug fixed

U.S., UK advise avoiding Internet Explorer until bug fixed | Reuters:
"The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team said in an advisory released on Monday that the vulnerability in versions 6 to 11 of Internet Explorer could lead to "the complete compromise" of an affected system."

Ted Cruz Demands Answers from the Obama BLM Regarding Texas Land Dispute

Ted Cruz Demands Answers from the Obama BLM Regarding Texas Land Dispute:
"In a show of support to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s pushback against the Obama BLM’s attempted land grab of the Red River Boundary Compact and the associated lands, Texas U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has sent a letter of inquiry to the head of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)."

History for April 29

History for April 29 - On-This-Day.com:
Birth anniversary of media magnate William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951).

Happy Birthday! Andre Agassi, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jerry Seinfeld


1429 - Joan of Arc led Orleans, France, to victory over Britain. 


1813 - Rubber was patented by J.F. Hummel. 


1852 - The first edition of Peter Roget's Thesaurus was published. 


1913 - Gideon Sundback patented an all-purpose zipper. 
The original 1917 patent for the Separable Fastener

1927 - Construction of the Spirit of St. Louis was completed for Lindbergh. 


1945 - In a bunker in Berlin, Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun were married. Hitler designated Admiral Karl Doenitz his successor. 


1945 - The Nazi death camp, Dachau, was liberated. 


1952 - IBM President Thomas J. Watson, Jr., informed his company's stockholders that IBM was building "the most advanced, most flexible high-speed computer in the world." The computer was unveiled April 7, 1953, as the IBM 701 Electronic Data Processing Machine. 


1974 - U.S. President Nixon announced he was releasing edited transcripts of secretly made White House tape recordings related to the Watergate scandal. 




1990 - The destruction of the Berlin Wall began. 


1992 - Rioting began after a jury decision to acquit four Los Angeles policemen in the Rodney King beating trial. 54 people were killed in 3 days. 


1998 - The U.S., Canada and Mexico end tariffs on $1 billion in NAFTA trade.