Author: Admin

New York Times – by MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is preparing to release roughly 6,000 inmates from federal prison as part of an effort to ease overcrowding and roll back the harsh penalties given to nonviolent drug dealers in the 1980s and ’90s, according to federal law enforcement officials.

The release is scheduled to occur from Oct. 30 to Nov. 2, and will be one of the largest one-time discharges of inmates from federal prisons in American history, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they did not want to be identified discussing matters that had not been publicly announced by the Justice Department.   Continue reading “U.S. to Release 6,000 Inmates Under New Sentencing Guidelines”

BBC News

The man accused of killing nine people at a community college in Oregon left behind a manifesto detailing his grievances, US media report.

Chris Harper Mercer opened fire on Thursday inside a classroom at Umpqua Community College and then killed himself when police arrived.

A police source told the Associated Press that Mercer complained in the document about not having a girlfriend.   Continue reading “Oregon community college gunman ‘left behind manifesto’”

Sent to us by a reader.

Free-Man’s Perspective – by Paul Rosenberg

Social media and smart phones don’t have to be evil – there’s nothing bad about talking to your friends, after all – but right now social media and “Big Brother in your pocket” phones are very clearly servicing evil. It wouldn’t be hard to build non-evil alternatives, but for the moment, the evil versions enjoy a monopoly. (At least with search engines, there are non-evil alternatives.)   Continue reading “Big Brother Is in High Gear”

CNN – by Holly Yan

Here’s the latest on the mammoth flooding tormenting the region:

Dam breaks

At least nine dams have breached or failed in South Carolina since Saturday, the state’s emergency management agency said early Tuesday.   Continue reading “South Carolina flooding: dams breached, more trouble ahead”

Activist Post – by Amanda Warren

While people were in a daze of reverie following the lunar eclipse and the Pope’s U.S. visit, a very important yet overlooked announcement was made by the Department of Justice.

“Launch of Strong Cities Network to Strengthen Community Resilience Against Violent Extremism” rang the bell to usher in a global-local initiative to ferret out extremism at the local level – yes, in the United States. Symbolically, it could also signal a turning point when it comes to local authorities and their treatment of the residents at large. Indeed, it is a global enmeshment that most Americans are either a) in the total dark about, or b) going hysterical over, if they’ve heard about it.   Continue reading “Did The UN Really Install A Global Police Force At The Local Level?”

Thanks to Enemy of the State.

The Conservative Treehouse – by Sundance

The Oregon Shooter is a 26-year-old black male.

Birth Certificate Name is: Christopher Sean Mercer – 07/26/1989.
Mother: Laurel Margaret Harper – 04/05/1951
Dad: Ian Bernard Mercer – 05/15/1960
Divorced in 2006   Continue reading “The Curious Case of Oregon Shooter Chris Harper-Mercer – A Social Media Profile Shaped, Modified and Deleted…”

Doctors Without Borders – by Christopher Stokes

“Today the US government has admitted that it was their airstrike that hit our hospital in Kunduz and killed 22 patients and MSF staff. Their description of the attack keeps changing—from collateral damage, to a tragic incident, to now attempting to pass responsibility to the Afghanistan government.   Continue reading “Doctors Without Borders Response to Pentagon Claim That Afghan Forces Called For Kunduz Airstrike”

Brady Campaign

WASHINGTON – The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence is calling for the resignation of Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin, effective immediately. The Campaign has also called for his replacement as lead investigator of the Umpqua Community College shooting.

“John Hanlin should tender his resignation from the Douglas Country Sheriff’s Office and be immediately replaced as lead investigator on this case,” said Dan Gross, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.   Continue reading “Brady Campaign Calls for Immediate Resignation of Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin”

CNN

Dana Huoppi, a spokeswoman with the Montpelier Fire Department, said at least two cars went off the track and over an embankment. First responders are on their way to the scene.   Continue reading “Amtrak passenger train derails in Vermont; four injured”

Fox News

Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton on Monday proposed tighter gun-control measures, including expanded background checks, and suggested that if elected she would use executive powers to achieve her goals.

“I want to push hard to get more sensible restraints,” Clinton said on NBC’s “Today” show. “I want to work with Congress, but I will look at ways as president.”   Continue reading “Clinton unveils plan for tighter gun control including executive action, expanded background checks”

New York Times – by LIZETTE ALVAREZ and RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA

MIAMI — Coast Guard officials said Monday that they believed a cargo ship that went missing in the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin had sunk.

Coast Guard aircraft continued on Monday to search for survivors of the ship, El Faro, a day after finding a large amount of debris floating near its last known position.   Continue reading “U.S.-Based Cargo Ship With Crew of 33 Sank in Storm”

Bloomberg – by Len Bracken, Rossella Brevetti and Angela Greiling Keane

A dozen Pacific-rim nations agreed to an historic pact that would cut trade barriers on items ranging from cars to rice, setting up a potentially contentious ratification vote before a skeptical U.S. Congress.

After a week of final talks in Atlanta, an agreement was announced Monday on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a pact more than five years in the making designed to boost commerce among nations that produce 40 percent of global economic output.   Continue reading “TPP: Pacific-Rim Nations Led by U.S. Agree to Historic Trade Deal”

Daily Caller – by Eric Owens

Students at a Wyoming high school took matters into their own hands last week by festooning themselves in the colors of the American flag after the principal and an assistant principal canceled “America Pride Day” over concerns that some immigrant students could feel sad and left out.

The scene of the red, white and blue brouhaha was Jackson Hole High School in Jackson, Wyo., reports the Jackson Hole News&Guide.   Continue reading “High School Students Revolt After Principal CANCELS ‘AMERICA PRIDE DAY’”

Reuters – by Krista Hughes

A dozen Pacific nations closed in on a sweeping free trade pact on Sunday in Atlanta after a breakthrough over how long a monopoly pharmaceutical companies should be given on new biotech drugs.

The issue has pitted the United States, which has argued for longer protections, against Australia and five other delegations who say such measures would strain national healthcare budgets and keep life-saving medicines from patients who cannot afford them.   Continue reading “After five years of negotiations, Pacific trade talks near deal”

Seattle PI – by Jennifer Peltz

NEW YORK (AP) — The removal of a stove may have led to a gas leak that caused an explosion and fire that ripped through a three-story building in Brooklyn, killing a woman inside and injuring three passers-by, authorities said.

Firefighters received a call at about 1 p.m. Saturday reporting an explosion at a building in the Borough Park neighborhood. Emergency crews found the entire front of the building blown into the street.   Continue reading “New York City explosion kills 1, hurts 3; gas leak suspected”

New York Times

The father of a 26-year-old gunman who killed nine people and then himself in a shooting rampage at a community college in Roseburg, Ore., said on Saturday that the massacre would not have happened if his son had not been allowed to purchase more than a dozen guns.

“How on earth could he compile 13 guns?” Ian Mercer, the father of Christopher Harper-Mercer, said in an interview with CNN at his home in Torrance, Calif. He said he had no idea that his son owned any firearms, adding, “How was he able to compile that kind of arsenal?”   Continue reading “Oregon Gunman’s Father Dismayed by Lack of Gun Legislation”

Reuters

The U.S. military on Saturday acknowledged it may have bombed a hospital run by medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres in the Afghan city of Kunduz in an air strike that killed at least nine people and wounded 37.

The incident could renew concerns about the use of U.S. air power in Afghanistan, a controversial issue in America’s longest war. Former President Hamid Karzai fell out with his backers in Washington over the number of civilians killed by bombs.   Continue reading “Nine dead at Afghan hospital after U.S. air strike”

The Onion

WASHINGTON—Researchers at the Urban Institute published a study Friday confirming that a sharp increase in gun sales nationwide would be the most concrete result of the impassioned pro-gun-control speech that President Obama delivered following yesterday’s mass shooting in Oregon.   Continue reading “Report: Increase In Gun Sales To Be Most Concrete Result Of Obama’s Pro-Gun-Control Speech”

Senator Blumenthal

This morning at the Hartford Legislative Office Building, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) announced new legislation that would bar gun sales until background checks are complete. Congresswoman Elizabeth Esty (D-5), Newtown Police Chief Michael Kehoe and Connecticut gun safety advocates also joined in the call for legislative action to end the dangerous practice of default sales if checks are pending beyond 72 hours.   Continue reading “No Check, No Gun: Blumenthal, Murphy Introduce Legislation Barring Gun Sales Until Background Checks Are Complete”