RT

Russia has struck eight Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) targets in Syria, the country’s Defense Ministry said, adding that “civilian infrastructure” was avoided during the operations.

“Today, Russian aerospace force jets delivered pinpoint strikes on eight ISIS terror group targets in Syria. In total, 20 flights were made,” spokesperson for the Russian Defense Ministry, Igor Konashenkov, said.    Continue reading “8 ISIS targets hit during 20 combat flights in Syria – Russian military”

Roll Call – by David Eldridge

Rep Luis V. Gutiérrez, one of Congress’ most outspoken advocates for immigrants, on Wednesday called for expanding the Affordable Care Act to cover all of the estimated 11 million undocumented migrants in the United States.

“The goal is to make integration and inclusion real for millions of families that are locked out under current law,” the Illinois Democrat said in a floor speech introducing his proposed legislation.   Continue reading “Congressman: Expand Obamacare to Undocumented Immigrants”

Newsmax – by Cathy Burke

Senior executives at the Department of Veterans Affairs gamed the agency to snag cushy jobs and collect a total of $400,000 in questionable expenses, a damning watchdog report charges.

The Office of Inspector General report also accuses one of the executives of wheedling out $300,000 to relocate 140 miles, from Washington to Philadelphia, to her new assignment.   Continue reading “Report: VA Execs Abused System, Collected $400K”

When Forest Gump died, he stood in front of St. Peter at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter said, “Welcome, Forest. We’ve heard a lot about you.” He continued, “Unfortunately, it’s getting pretty crowded up here and we find that we now have to give people an entrance examination before we let them in.”

“Okay,” said Forest. “I hope it’s not too hard. I’ve already been through a test. My momma used to say, ‘Life is like a final exam. It’s hard.’ ”   Continue reading “St. Peter & Forrest Gump”

Reuters

The principal of a South Dakota high school was wounded by a gunshot on Wednesday and a student was taken into custody, according to officials and media reports.

The gunshot victim was in stable condition, Lincoln County State’s Attorney Tom Wollman said.

Reuters was not immediately able to confirm local media reports that the injured person was the principal of Harrisburg High School south of Sioux Falls.   Continue reading “South Dakota principal wounded in high school shooting: media”

Reuters

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed legislation to avert a government shutdown, sending the measure to the House of Representatives just hours before funding for federal agencies runs out at midnight.

Passed by a 78-20 vote, the bill would keep federal agencies funded at current levels through Dec. 11. It does not include a controversial provision to cut off money to Planned Parenthood that many conservative Republicans had demanded.   Continue reading “Senate passes bill to avert government shutdown, sends to House”

Cop Block – by Kelly W. Patterson

A thirty-five minute surveillance video has been released as part of the evidence during the trial of three former corrections officers in Lawrence County Ohio for excessive force. Corrections Officers Jeremy S. Hanshaw, Ronald S. Hatfield and Jason D. Mays can be seen beating, kicking, choking, and smothering an inmate continuously throughout that video. That inmate, Larry Kinstler, was restrained the entire time. Initially, he was in handcuffs while in subsequent assaults he was fully restrained and unable to move at all.   Continue reading “Video Shows Lawrence County Corrections Officers Beating and Choking Inmate”

ZME Science – by Tibi Puiu

Despite manufacturers have tirelessly designed new types of razor blades for a cleaner shave, the process has stayed virtually unchanged for thousands of years. The difference between a modern razor blade and an ancient roman shaving knife isn’t that large, on a fundamental level at least. This may set to change if the Skarp Laser Razor makes its way into the shaving kit market. The gadget is basically a high-tech razor – named so only by function – that uses a highly focused laser beam instead of a blade.   Continue reading “Forget about razor blades – it’s time to welcome the laser razor”

Reason – by Jacob Sullum

Less than a year ago, Oregon voters approved Measure 91, which legalized marijuana for recreational use. Since July 1, Oregonians who are 21 or older have been allowed to possess up to an ounce in public and grow up to four plants at home. Tomorrow cannabis consumers without green thumbs (or friends who have them) will have another option: They can legally buy marijuana at more than 200 locations.   Continue reading “Legal Marijuana Sales Begin in Oregon Tomorrow”

Gallup – by Rebecca Riffkin

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Four in 10 Americans say they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of trust and confidence in the mass media to report the news fully, accurately and fairly. This ties the historical lows on this measure set in 2014 and 2012. Prior to 2004, slight majorities of Americans said they trusted the mass media, such as newspapers, TV and radio.   Continue reading “Americans’ Trust in Media Remains at Historical Low”

Mail.com

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A fugitive wanted in the kidnapping and torture of two women in suburban Portland nearly a quarter century ago was arrested at a hotel in Mexico, where he had been working and living under an assumed name.

Paul Erven Jackson, 45, was arrested Monday by Mexican immigration authorities in downtown Guadalajara, Deputy U.S. Marshal Eric Wahlstrom said. He was flown to the United States overnight and booked into a Los Angeles jail on Tuesday.   Continue reading “Fugitive accused of kidnapping arrested after 24 years”

Mail.com

DENVER (AP) — A man convicted of stabbing five people to death during a Denver bar robbery that netted $170 will be formally sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday.

A judge will issue a mandatory sentence of life without parole for Dexter Lewis, 25, who was convicted in August of five counts of murder for the October 2012 stabbings at Fero’s Bar and Grill. Prosecutors said Lewis led a four-man robbery crew at Fero’s, where he killed the bar’s owner and four customers. Two men testified that Lewis stabbed his victims while they were held at gunpoint.   Continue reading “Man who killed 5 in Denver bar to get life sentence”

Mail.com

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A ship carrying illicit arms believed to be from Iran was intercepted last week off the southern Arabian Peninsula by a member of a U.S.-backed naval coalition and was not registered with any country, the U.S. Navy said Wednesday.

The American description of the ship’s seizure conflicted in some instances with an earlier account provided by a separate Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Shiite rebels, which claimed it had foiled the smuggling attempt. The Saudi coalition alleged that Iran was using the vessel to ship arms to the rebels.   Continue reading “Weapons believed to be from Iran seized in Arabian Sea”

RT

A temporary government spending bill is expected to clear the House and Senate just before a midnight deadline on Wednesday, averting a government shutdown and providing funding until December 11. As a precaution, House lawmakers have invoked “martial law.”

The use of martial law fast-tracks a spending bill by bypassing typical procedures. One of those procedures is that the House of Representatives has to wait a day after the Rules Committee produces rules for a floor debate before a vote on the bill can occur, according to the Hill. By invoking martial law, House lawmakers can vote on the short-term government spending measure on the same day.   Continue reading “‘Martial law’ invoked as Congress scurries to avoid another government shutdown”

RT

At least six people were killed and dozens injured after parcels containing explosives caused massive explosions in Liucheng county and Liuzhou city, in China’s north-central Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, CCTV reported. A suspect has been identified.

Up to 15 explosions were heard across the city between 3.15pm and 5pm.   Continue reading “15 massive blasts in Guangxi, China: At least 6 killed, 13 injured, police blame explosive parcels”

MassPrivateI

Cable companies are spying on your mortgage, car and student loans, etc.

According to Bloomberg Business:

“Using data from cable set-top boxes that track TV viewing, credit cards and other sources, media companies including Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal, Time Warner Inc.’s Turner and Viacom Inc. are trying to compete with Web giants like Google Inc. and Facebook Inc. and help marketers target their messages to the right audience.” Continue reading “Your television and cable box box are spying on EVERY purchase you’ve ever made”

Cyrptogon

haha I’m in my usual middle-of-the-night slog through the doom and just reading about coffee made me feel high and happy. Who knows or cares if the fancy Harvard people are right about coffee being some sort of health elixir.

Mmmm coffee.

Via: Harvard:

Coffee is everywhere, through history and across the world. And increasingly, science is demonstrating that its popularity is a good thing.   Continue reading “Health Benefits of Coffee a Recurring Theme in Harvard Research”

Fox News

Russian warplanes began bombarding Syrian opposition targets in the war-torn nation’s north Wednesday, following a terse meeting at which a Russian general asked Pentagon officials to clear out of Syrian air space and was rebuffed, Fox News has learned.

A U.S. official said Russian airstrikes targeted fighters in the vicinity of Homs, located roughly 60 miles east of a Russian naval facility in Tartus, and were carried out by a “couple” of Russian bombers. The strikes hit targets in Homs and Hama, but there is no presence of ISIS in those areas, a senior U.S. defense official said. These planes are hitting areas where Free Syrian Army and other anti-Assad groups are located, the official said.   Continue reading “Russia launches airstrikes in northern Syria, senior military official says”