Town Hall – by Leah Barkoukis

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed a one-year pilot program into law on Friday that tests welfare recipients and applicants suspected of substance abuse.

Those suspected of using drugs will be tested using an “empirically validated substance abuse screening tool.” If the results come back positive, they’ll be referred to a treatment program and will have to continue submitting periodic drug tests. When those tests come back negative, their benefits can be restored. Those who refuse to comply will be suspended from receiving benefits for a six-month period.   Continue reading “Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder OKs Drug Testing Welfare Recipients”

ABC News

California on Friday will start taking driver’s license applications from the nation’s largest population of immigrants in the country illegally.

The state Department of Motor Vehicles expects 1.4 million people will seek a license in the first three years of a program aimed at boosting road safety and making immigrants’ lives easier.   Continue reading “Illegals to Seek California Driver Licenses”

The son in the crime duo was on the lam for 90 minutes after the traffic stop and gun fight before he turned himself in, police said.USA Today – by Doug Stranglin

The two bodies found in the back of a pickup truck have been identified as a North Carolina couple allegedly shot by a father and son from Texas who went on a multi-state crime spree that ended in the bizarre roadside shooting of two West Virginia police officers.

The rampage unraveled Thursday when the two Lewisburg officers pulled over a white Chevy SUV that allegedly had stolen plates from North Carolina. After stopping the vehicle, a man later claiming to be the first driver’s father pulled over nearby in a red pickup truck, according to N.C. Granville County Sheriff Brindell Wilkins Jr, WRAL-TV reports.   Continue reading “Bodies found in pickup after shootout with W. Va. cops”

Global Post

(Reuters) – Two police officers exchanged fire with a hidden gunman early on Thursday morning in South San Francisco, California, then arrested a man on charges of attempted murder, police said.

Two South San Francisco officers responding to reports of gunshots at 3 a.m. PST were fired upon by a hidden gunman, the South San Francisco Police Department said in a statement.   Continue reading “California man arrested, charged with shooting at police”

Christian GomezCNN – by Kevin Conlon

When the cops showed up to a subdivision Wednesday night in Oldsmar, Florida, it wasn’t to break up a loud party or for any sort of bacchanalian revelry typical of New Year’s Eve.

No, Mario Gomez called 911 to report something far more sinister and ghastly: His brother had just cut off their mother’s head with an ax.   Continue reading “Son decapitated mother over ‘nagging,’ Florida sheriff says”

NBC News – by Shamar Walters

Two suspects are in custody after two police officers were shot during a traffic stop in West Virginia. Authorities in Lewisburg said both officers are expected to survive and that one was hit in the rib but was wearing a protective vest, and the second officer was grazed by a bullet.

The names of those taken into custody were not immediately released. The shooting happened after Lewisburg police stopped a vehicle with stolen plates on Interstate 64 and were fired upon, Donna Hinkle, director of administration at the Greenbrier County 911 Center, told NBC News.   Continue reading “Two West Virginia Cops Shot During Vehicle Stop”

PHOTO: Mario Cuomo, 1932-2015ABC News – by Michael S. James

Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo died today at age 82, multiple sources confirmed to ABC News.

Cuomo, a Democrat who served as governor of the Empire State from 1983 to 1994, is the father of current New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Andrew Cuomo was sworn in to a second term as governor today, becoming the first Democrat to enter a second term as New York governor since his father, who reportedly was too frail to attend the ceremony.   Continue reading “Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo Dead at 82”

Sent to us by the author, Gary Bertnick

As the sun rises faithfully
And dramatic colors streak across the sky
Eyes brighten as the day becomes suddenly richer and fuller
A breath of fresh air fills the lungs
While a light breeze moves around the body
New strength invigorates
The mind so much clearer
Creative thoughts easily move and laugh   Continue reading “A New Man”

ABC News – Ferndale, California

The U.S. Geological Survey is reporting a 5.3 magnitude earthquake off the coast of northern California.

The USGS says the quake was centered in the Pacific Ocean, about 70 miles west of Ferndale, California, and struck about 4:16 a.m. PST Thursday. Ferndale is located just over 100 miles south of the Oregon state line and about 275 miles northwest of Sacramento.   Continue reading “Earthquake off Coast Shakes Northern California”

Yahoo News – by Mead Gruver

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Huge flames ripped through historic buildings in the picturesque western Wyoming town of Dubois as firefighters contended with subzero temperatures that froze their hoses and other equipment.

Four buildings containing more than a dozen businesses were destroyed, but Mayor Twila Blakeman credited firefighters with keeping the flames from spreading even further.   Continue reading “Wyoming town burns in subzero temps”

110708+Police+Scanner+OceansideSent to us by a reader who said: Oh Yeah & this isnt going to be misused at all…

Counter Current News – by Moreh B.D.K

Tenth Circuit by Judge Neil Gorsuch is always known for his strong opinions. He recently let the increasingly militarized and Constitution-ignoring police have it in the ruling on United States v. Denson, which addresses the use a Doppler radar device to determine if residents are present within a home to be searched or raided.

The case involved a home entry and arrest of a suspect.   Continue reading “Judge Weighs In On The Use of Radar Devices To Scan Homes For Police Searches”

Bloomberg – by Jim Snyder and Brian Wingfield

A U.S. Senate committee soon to be led by Republicans will hold a hearing next week on legislation to approve TransCanada Corp. (TRP)’s Keystone XL pipeline, bypassing the current review by the Obama administration.

The energy committee hearing on Jan. 7, a day after Congress reconvenes, will help get a Keystone measure “to the floor as soon as possible,” Robert Dillon, a spokesman for the panel, said today in an e-mail.   Continue reading “Senate Republicans Set Hearing to Advance Keystone XL Bill”

Seattle Times – by Cathy McLain

OLYMPIA — Opponents of a new expanded gun background-check measure in Washington state filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday, asking a federal judge to block parts of the law that involve transfers of firearms.

The lawsuit was filed in district court in Tacoma and seeks a permanent injunction against enforcement of parts of Initiative 594 that deal with non-commercial transfers to private citizens. The measure was approved by voters in November.   Continue reading “Suit challenges I-594, expansion of gun-buyer background checks”

Multiple Deaths 20141230Yahoo Canada – by Tim Cook

EDMONTON – An Edmonton man suspected of killing six adults and two young children before taking his own life was well-known to police and had a lengthy criminal record.

But police Chief Rod Knecht told a news conference late Tuesday night that there is no suggestion of gang involvement and the motive for the “senseless mass murder” appears to have been “planned and deliberate” domestic violence.   Continue reading “Edmonton police confirm 8 victims in what chief calls ‘senseless mass murder’”

Eugene Ryan Boos (Photo courtesy of Minnesota Department of Corrections)Twin Cities Pioneer Press – by Tad Vezner and Sarah Horner

A standoff at a Fridley apartment building Tuesday between SWAT teams and a fugitive wanted for violating his probation for a murder conviction ended with the fugitive injured and in custody, and no one else hurt.

The incident began sometime before 1 p.m., as law enforcement officers and SWAT teams surrounded the building on the 150 block of Island Park Drive near the intersection of East River Road.   Continue reading “Fridley, Minnesota: Standoff with police ends as shot fugitive taken into custody”

NBC Philadelphia – by Dan Stamm and David Chang

A traffic stop turned deadly overnight in South Jersey.

Police officers in Bridgeton, New Jersey opened fire on a passenger of a Jaguar after pulling the vehicle over at South Avenue and Henry Street around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.

The suspect died after being rushed to the hospital.   Continue reading “Police Officers in South Jersey Shoot, Kill Man During Traffic Stop”

A partially collapsed wall at the Morton Salt facility gave way to tons of salt being dumped onto parked cars at an adjacent car dealership in Chicago, Illinois, December 30, 2014. No injuries were reported in the incident but several cars were covered in salt. REUTERS/Andrew Nelles (UNITED STATES - Tags: SOCIETY)Boston.com

CHICAGO (AP) — A wall at a Morton Salt storage facility has collapsed, burying several cars at a next-door auto dealership in road salt.

Company spokeswoman Denise Lauer says a side wall broke Tuesday afternoon, spilling road salt outside of the facility on Chicago’s northwest side and onto the neighboring property. Morton Salt Inc. is a more than 100-year-old company based in Chicago best known for its pourable table salt.

No injuries were reported.   Continue reading “Cars Buried in Salt After Morton Storage Collapse”

Reuters – by LOUIS CHARBONNEAU

The U.N. Security Council on Tuesday rejected a Palestinian resolution calling for an Israeli withdrawal from the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem and the establishment of a Palestinian state by late 2017.

The resolution called for negotiations to be based on territorial lines that existed before Israel captured the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Middle East war. It also called for a peace deal within 12 months.   Continue reading “Palestinian statehood resolution fails at U.N council, U.S. votes against”

walmartSent to us by Market Daily News

Michael Snyder:  Should the federal government be spending billions of dollars to pump up Wal-Mart’s profits?  I know that question sounds really bizarre, but unfortunately this is essentially what is happening.  Because Wal-Mart does not pay them enough money, hundreds of thousands of Wal-Mart employees enroll in Medicaid, food stamps and other social welfare programs.  Even though Wal-Mart makes enormous profits, they refuse to properly take care of their employees so the federal government has to do it.  And of course this is not just a Wal-Mart problem.  There are hundreds of other major corporations doing exactly the same thing.  And they will keep on doing it as long as they can because relying on the federal government to take care of their employees allows them to make much larger profits.  This gives these companies an enormous competitive advantage and it distorts the marketplace.  If you love the free enterprise system, you should be aghast at this.  Our big corporations have become the biggest “welfare queens” of all, and Wal-Mart is near the top of that list.   Continue reading “The US Government Spends 2.6 Billion To Pump Up Wal-Marts Profits”