Month: October 2014

My Fox 8

SURF CITY, N.C. — The Surf City Police Department has confirmed that they are investigating reports of a bomb threat, WECT reports.

“Parts of the town” are being evacuated, officials said.

Officials say they are turning away cars, but wouldn’t say where the cars are being turned away from.   Continue reading “Parts of Surf City, NC evacuated over bomb threat”

Mail.com

SEATTLE (AP) — Police in the Seattle suburb of Auburn say they are still looking for an actress known for her roles in “August: Osage County,” ”Frozen River” and “Django Unchained.”

Misty Upham’s father, Charles Upham, tells KIRO-FM (http://bit.ly/1p8Dq2w ) that his daughter was upset and erratic and had stopped taking medication for anxiety and bipolar disorder. The 32-year-old Native American actress was reported missing by her family Oct. 6, a day after telling police she was suicidal. Her father tells the station he doesn’t believe his daughter would kill herself.   Continue reading “Actress Misty Upham still missing in Seattle area”

Mail.com

UXBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — At least two of the three babies whose skeletal remains were found in a filthy, vermin-infested Massachusetts home may have been alive “for some period of time” before they were found, a prosecutor said in court Tuesday.

Both bodies were found wearing diapers and one-piece infant outfits in closets in the Blackstone home, Assistant District Attorney John Bradley said during a bail hearing for Erika Murray in Uxbridge District Court.   Continue reading “Prosecutors say dead babies were found clothed”

The Hill – by Jesse Byrnes

Ann Romney ruled out another White House bid by her husband, Mitt Romney, even as the two-time presidential candidate remains coy on another run.

“Done, completely. Not only Mitt and I are done, but the kids are done. Done. Done. Done,” the former Massachusetts first lady told the Los Angeles Times.

The comment came after Ann Romney discussed a research center in her name that the couple plans to launch in Boston on Tuesday. It will study diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Lou Gehrig’s and multiple sclerosis.   Continue reading “Ann Romney: ‘Mitt and I are done’”

Yahoo News

The Hague (AFP) – The Dutch public prosecutor said on Tuesday that motorbike gang members who have reportedly joined Kurds battling the Islamic State group in Iraq are not necessarily committing any crime.

“Joining a foreign armed force was previously punishable, now it’s no longer forbidden,” public prosecutor spokesman Wim de Bruin told AFP.   Continue reading “Netherlands says OK for biker gangs to fight Islamic State”

Stepping Stones Living – by STEPHANIEBND

Many will remember NBC’s chief medical correspondent, Nancy Snyderman for her public proclamation on the MSNBC Morning Meeting show in 2010.   When discussing the swine flu, she stated that Americans needed to stop questioning medical authorities and pay attention to them.  She fear mongers about how our immune systems are not ready for this new virus and tries to play on individuals fear of getting sick and losing your job because you have to take time off to care for a child.  She also travels down another road trying to combat the people who view this vaccine as just another way for big pharma to make money.  She ends the discussion with……  “There’s no conspiracy here folks,  just get your damn flu vaccine.”    Continue reading “NBC Chief Medical Correspondant Violates Quarantine”

The Fiscal Times – by Brianna Ehley

Scientists across the world are scrambling to develop an Ebola vaccine to quell the deadly outbreak in West Africa, but the top scientist at the National Institutes of Health says his agency would likely have one by now if it weren’t for the steep budget cuts imposed by Congress.

In an interview with the Huffington Post, Dr. Francis Collins said, “Frankly, if we had not gone through our 10-year slide in research support, we probably would have had a vaccine in time for this that would’ve gone through clinical trials and would have been ready.”   Continue reading “Biggest Threat to An Ebola Outbreak? Budget Cuts”

Yahoo News – by Maureen Mackey

Mark Zuckerberg, one of the co-founders of Facebook whose personal wealth is estimated at $32.4 billion, announced this morning that he and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are donating $25 million to help fight the battle against Ebola.

In a Facebook post, Zuckerberg, 30, said “we need to get Ebola under control in the near term so that it doesn’t spread further and become a long-term global health crisis that we end up fighting for decades at large scale, like HIV or polio.”   Continue reading “Will Zuckerberg’s $25M Ebola Donation Spur More?”

Buckeye Firearms Association

The September 2014 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of1,024,272 is the second highest September on record for the 16-year-old system, even with a decrease of 1.0 percent compared to the September 2013 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,034,701. For comparison, the unadjusted September 2014 NICS figure of 1,447,485 reflects a 4.0 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,392,423 in September 2013.   Continue reading “September 2014 Firearms Sales Checks Second Highest September on Record”

ABC News – by Matthew Lee, AP

Concerned about potential security risks, the U.S. government is taking a close look at last week’s sale of New York’s iconic Waldorf Astoria hotel to a Chinese insurance company.

U.S. officials said Monday they are reviewing the Oct. 6 purchase of the Waldorf by the Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group, which bought the hotel from Hilton Worldwide for $1.95 billion. Terms of the sale allow Hilton to run the hotel for the next 100 years and call for “a major renovation” that officials say has raised eyebrows in Washington, where fears of Chinese eavesdropping and cyber espionage run high.   Continue reading “US Eyes Sale of NY’s Waldorf Hotel to Chinese Firm”

Sipsey Street Irregulars

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, A modern view of the street where five bank robbers met up with the armed citizenry in 1922.

I found the following true story of community self-defense in a 1970 edition of A Fame Not Easily Forgotten that I picked up at the thrift store for $.98. This slim volume contains many stories of the community of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, including that of its one-time mayor and most prominent and colorful citizen named (and I kid you not) Festus Orestes Butt. But the excerpt I present below is an interesting anecdote of community defense.   Continue reading ““Honor is due to all who participated in the shooting.” Community Defense in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, 27 September 1922.”

BBC News

A UN medical worker infected with Ebola has died at a hospital in Germany.

Doctors at the hospital in Leipzig said the man, 56, originally from Sudan, died despite receiving experimental drugs to treat the virus.

More than 4,400 people have died from the outbreak, mainly in West Africa.   Continue reading “Ebola outbreak: UN health worker dies in Germany hospital”

Liberty Blitzkrieg – by Michael Krieger

The increased use of eminent domain to transfer property to powerful political interests, the ramifications of the wars on terrorism and drugs, and the violation of the property rights of bondholders in the auto-bailout case have weakened the tradition of strong adherence to the rule of law in United States. We believe these factors have contributed to the sharp decline in the rating for the legal-system area.

To a large degree, the United States has experienced a significant move away from rule of law and toward a highly regulated, politicized, and heavily policed state.   Continue reading “New Report – The United States’ Sharp Drop in Economic Freedom Since 2000 Driven by “Decline in Rule of Law””

Beacon – by Muckrock

The Federal Communications Commission insists that it does not require police departments to sign a nondisclosure agreement with the FBI before acquiring or deploying cell phone trackers. The FCC’s response contradicts wording found in one such FBI nondisclosure agreement released last month by Tacoma police.

The FBI and FCC have both declined to comment on the discrepancy, and the FBI has rejected another FOIA request for a log of agencies that have signed such nondisclosure agreements.   Continue reading “FCC and FBI disagree over NDA requirement for police StingRays”

Air Force Times – by Patricia Kime, October 6, 2014

Agencies within the Defense Department are hard at work on a potential Ebola vaccine, with safety testing on humans expected to begin as early as next week.

The Pentagon recently received approval from the Food and Drug Administration to start testing the vaccine, VSVΔG-ZEBOV or BPSC1001, for health risks and side effects on people.

It already has been tested for safety as well as performance against the deadly disease in animals, a defense official said Friday.   Continue reading “Potential Ebola vaccines studied by DoD agencies”

Where is the wealth of our nation going?

How did you do in the 3rd quarter?

Wells Fargo 3Q profit up 21 percent

Yahoo News: Wells Fargo’s net income rose to $4.06 billion, or 72 cents per share, matching the forecasts of analysts surveyed by FactSet. In the same period a year ago the bank earned $3.34 billion, or 60 cents per share.   Continue reading “Big Banks’ 3Q Profits Up – Wealth Transfer?”