Reuters/Jim YoungRT News

Hundreds of US soldiers are under investigation in the US for allegedly embezzling “tens of millions” of dollars using a National Guard fund. Lawmakers have called the investigation one of the largest in US army history.

An Army audit revealed that American soldiers had been pocketing millions of dollars from a National Guard fund, which gives bonuses to troops that recruit their friends into the Army. The audit found that at least 1,200 recruiters had lined their pockets with potentially fraudulent pay outs, while another 2000 had received “questionable payments.”   Continue reading “Hundreds of US soldiers pocketed ‘tens of millions’ of dollars in fraud scandal”

America’s Religiosity Is Increasing: Gallup m4scymn4f0glpqgynkjpyaBefore It’s News – by Mort Amsel

Gallup publishes in February of each year a survey of the extent of self-described religiosity in each state; and they report that religiosity is rising throughout the country. Gallup headlined this year’s survey on February 3rd, “Mississippi Maintains Hold as Most Religious U.S. State; Vermont is the least religious.” Last year, it was “Mississippi Most Religious State, Vermont Least Religious.” No change there: in fact, the rank-orders of the 50 states (plus D.C.) are almost unchanged during the past 12 months.   Continue reading “More Americans Turning To God”

Jerry Waller and one of his grandchildren in a photo taken before his death.  (Source: Waller Family)Police State USA

FORT WORTH, TX — An elderly man was slain in his own garage because police “inadvertently began searching” the wrong address while investigating a burglary call.  Spotting a man who appeared “standoffish” in his own garage, police opened fire, killing a 72-year-old grandfather.  After months of investigation, the officer has been cleared and is back on the streets.

In the earliest hour of May 28th, 2013, Jerry Waller was awoken after midnight to the sound of his neighbor’s home burglar alarm. Doing the neighborly thing, Mr. Waller got out of bed to check on the family next door. He took a pistol with him as his wife stayed behind.   Continue reading “Officer cleared after going to wrong address, shooting innocent grandpa in his garage”

Protesters rally against the Keystone XL oil pipeline outside The White House in Washington February 3, 2014. (Reuters / Yuri Gripas)RT News

As many as 300 candlelight vigils in cities across the US were scheduled for Monday night, as those in protest of the Keystone XL pipeline urged President Obama to ultimately reject the project that will ship tar sands oil from western Canada to Texas.

In parks, city halls, churches and other venues, thousands of peaceful demonstrators showed their opposition to the 1,179-mile pipeline that would move high-carbon tar sands oil through the heart of the United States, from western Canada to a hub in Nebraska, where it would then connect with other existing pipelines to deliver 800,000 barrels of crude oil a day to refineries in Texas.   Continue reading “Some 300 rallies held in US after State Dept green lights Keystone XL”

A memorial for movie actor Philip Seymour Hoffman is displayed in front of his apartment building in New York February 3, 2014. (Reuters / Joshua Lott)RT News

One day after Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his apartment, police are looking into whether his apparent heroin overdose is linked to a lethal batch of the drug that recently arrived on the East Coast.

As noted by Raw Story, law enforcement agencies have spent the last month pursuing batches of heroin laced with fentanyl – a powerful painkiller – that have been deemed responsible for dozens of deaths in multiple states. The deadly drug cocktail has made its way east from Pennsylvania, and has been detected in states such as Maryland, New York and Rhode Island.   Continue reading “Lethal heroin batches hit East Coast same week as actor Seymour Hoffman died”

Mail.com

GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) — A tiny minnow that lives only in Oregon backwaters is the first fish ever taken off U.S. Endangered Species Act protection because it is no longer threatened with extinction.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was to announce Tuesday that the Oregon chub was recovered, 21 years after it went on the endangered species list. The agency will monitor the fish for nine years to make sure populations continue to grow.   Continue reading “Tiny minnow is 1st fish taken off endangered list”

Michael David ElliotMail.com

IONIA, Mich. (AP) — A convicted killer captured after a one-day escape from a Michigan prison has been charged with kidnapping, carjacking and escape.

The Ionia County District Court says charges were filed Monday while authorities were still hunting for Michael David Elliot. He was captured Monday night in a stolen car in LaPorte County, Ind., more than 150 miles from the Ionia prison.   Continue reading “Charges filed against escaped Michigan prisoner”

WND – by Aaron Klein

With Democrats and Republicans working together to craft legislation on immigration reform, it is becoming increasingly clear the Senate’s immigration bill from last year will serve as the foundation for a future framework.

WND has reviewed the entire 1,190-page bill and found numerous largely unreported sections that are of import to the American public. Here are the top five:   Continue reading “Top 5 Shockers Inside Immigration Bill”

MassPrivateI

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, who is the vice-chairman of the National Governors Association, addressed the issue during the annual “State of the States” speech earlier this month in Washington, D.C. 

“As the nation develops resiliency to cyberattacks, the Guard should be mobilized to support federal and state efforts to protect networks and respond to incidents,” said Hickenlooper, a Democrat. “While the federal government seeks to clarify how it will work with the private sector and states to better secure cyberspace, states are already moving forward to develop and implement new cyberpolicies to protect their economies and ensure public safety.”   Continue reading “National Guard cyberspies employed at Google, Boeing, Cisco, Verizon, and Microsoft”

Canada Free Press – by Sarge

I don’t watch Obama when he speaks. I read the transcripts after the fact. I do this because there’s always the possibility a person such as Obama has the charisma to twist words in a mercurial and slick manner so it seems ingenious as opposed to disingenuous. The guy has the ability to advertise dog crap as smelling good in comparison to the reality. This is a characteristic of many great politicians: Hitler, Mussolini, Lenin, Mao, Nixon and others.   Continue reading “Camouflage is his favorite color”

Fox News

The IRS’ announcement Monday that it will pay cancelled 2013 bonuses has infuriated Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch, who wants to know why an agency with employees who “inappropriately” targeted conservative political groups would reinstate the rewards.

“The IRS is accused of targeting conservative groups, with many of its employees having conducted themselves in a manner inappropriate for government officials, and the agency decides to reinstate employee bonuses?” asked Hatch, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee. “This is outrageous.”   Continue reading “Senator rebukes IRS over decision to reinstate 2013 employee bonuses”

AlterNet – by Steven Rosenfeld

No longer content to vacuum up, scan, index and sell analytics based on the content of our texts, emails, searches, locations and more, Google now has a new target: tapping, mapping and colonizing the networks wiring our lives.

“Google argues that it has the right to collect your most sensitive data, as long as it flows across an open WiFi network,” PrivacySOS.org said last month after Google announced a $3.2 billion acquisition of Nest, which sells WiFi-controlled home heating appliances. “Now do you want to let this company inside your home?”   Continue reading “Google Has Launched a For-Profit Privacy Invasion Into Our Electronic Lives”

New York State Education Commissioner John King, (Mike Groll/AP File Photo)Washington Post – by VALERIE STRAUSS

The Board of Directors of the New York State United Teachers, a union with more than 600,000 members, has approved a resolution that withdraws its earlier support for the Common Core State Standards ”as implemented and interpreted” by the New York Education Department. It also declares ”no confidence” in the policies of State Education Commissioner John King and calls for a three-year moratorium on high-stakes consequences from standardized testing.

The action is a blow to supporters of the Common Core, which was approved several years ago in 45 states and the District of Columbia but which has become increasingly controversial around the country, with a number of states pulling back from the initiative or changing the standards. Some states, such as Florida, are actually changing the name so as not to be seen as being identified with the Core.   Continue reading “NY teachers union pulls its support from Common Core, urges removal of state ed chief”

Linked In -by Jules Polonetsky

New York State is working on a system that will track students from pre-kindergarten to the work force. The goals are noble. Despite the billions we spend on education, we don’t have the data to evaluate what works. But what are the risks of assembling detailed data about every student’s abilities? Privacy advocates are sounding the alarm, worried about the implications of sharing this data. Parents and policymakers are being drawn into the fray, but often aren’t steeped in the full scope of the debate.   Continue reading “Tracking Students from Pre-K to Work Force: Swatting a Mosquito with a Drone?”

Infidel Strong Body ArmorMilitia News – by Chad Cooper

The Second Amendment (Amendment II) of the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights says, “A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

Apparently, the Connecticut legislature does not include body armor as a type of “arms” or if they do, they just don’t care about the Constitution. You see, Public Act 98-127 criminalizes the transaction of body armor unless done face to face. In other words, if you live in Connecticut, you can’t buy body armor online or via a catalog (Military members, Law Enforcement, Judges excepted). New York is following suit and has legislation drafted to prohibit armor as well. New Jersey? Virginia? California? Texas? Who’s next?   Continue reading “Is Body Armor Legal In Your State?”

Free House In Yakima, WashingtonEconomic Collapse – by Michael Snyder

Would you like to buy a house for one dollar?  If someone came up to you on the street and asked you that question, you would probably respond by saying that it sounds too good to be true.  But this is actually happening in economically-depressed cities all over America.  Of course there are a number of reasons why you might want to think twice before buying any of these homes, and I will get into those reasons in just a little bit.  First, however, it is worth noting that many of the cities where these “free houses” are available were once some of the most prosperous cities in the entire country.  In fact, the city of Detroit once had the highest per capita income in the entire nation.  But as millions of good jobs have been shipped overseas, these once prosperous communities have degenerated into rotting, decaying hellholes.  Now homes that once housed thriving middle class families cannot even be given away.  This is happening all over America, and what we are witnessing right now is only just the beginning.   Continue reading “You Can Buy A House For One Dollar Or Less In Economically Depressed Cities All Over America”