CBS News correspondent Priya David and her husband Alex Clemens got a look at a news story in progress from a unique angle this week — the FBI mistakenly raided their home with eight heavily armed and armored officers. They had the wrong family and appeared to dial down a bit when they were told that the woman upstairs nursing a baby was a CBS correspondent.
There is a fascinating case out of Florida this week that raises questions over the required proof needed for a criminal conviction — in this case, animal cruelty. Carla Ann Thomas was convicted of animal neglect after her a 5-year-old Akita named Sache was found dead after being left over the weekend at Healthy Paws, Thomas’ health food store for dogs and cats in St. Petersburg. She was convicted despite the fact that there was no necropsy and no one knows why the dog died. The prosecutor says that that is immaterial. Continue reading “Florida Woman Found Guilty of Criminal Neglect In Leaving Dog At Store For A Day Despite Absence of Necropsy”→
The Cherokee Tribe is in an interesting confrontation with the federal government over the right of the tribe to ban 2,800 African Americans from its citizenship rolls. Joe Crittenden, the tribe’s acting principal chief, insists that the Bureau of Indian Affairs has challenged the sovereignty of the tribe and “The Cherokee Nation will not be governed by the BIA.”
In Michigan, parents are outraged by the decision of a high school to allow senior Mitchell Landis to continue to play football after he was arrested and charged with rape. They insist that such arrests could constitute a violation of “good behavior” standards.
The Obama Administration is trying to quietly kill the move for recognition of a Palestinian state, particularly after the loss of Anthony Weiner’s seat in the House due in part to an angry backlash by Jewish voters over support of Israel. Other countries have said it is time and momentum appeared to be with the Palestinians . . . at least until the Palestine Liberation Organization’s ambassador Maen Areikat to the United States decided to add his views. Areikat described his vision of a beautiful new free and independent state. The key component? No Jews. Continue reading “PLO Ambassador Declares New Palestinian State Would Be Jew Free”→
We have been following what Jon Huntsman called the war on science in the GOP. Now Rep. Michele Bachmann has added to the attacks on global warming, evolution, environmental protections, and other scientific work with a claim that the leading anti-cancer vaccine given to little girls causes retardation. Experts responded with alarm that Bachmann’s comments could discourage families from giving children the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
A story today should prompt some discussion in how our society is changing as more and more Americans work for the government. For years, there has been a concern that we are becoming an institutionalized society with millions of Americans serving or working in prisons while millions more work for police and government agencies. Now, a report shows that one out of every 100 Americans work for the Defense Department. That is an astonishing figure. That figure balloons further when one considers the number of citizens working in the internal security, police, and intelligence systems.
Police in Edinburg are being sued after 40 officers raided a “gentlemen’s club” called Jaguars Gold Club in search of drugs. They found none, but handcuffed the owners and employees and allegedly left with $1,500 in cash and another $8,000 worth of club “tokens.”
The State of North Carolina is about to pay litigation costs to fight for the right to favor pro-life citizens over pro-choose citizens. The state has approved “Choose Life” license plates while steadfastly refusing to allow a pro-choose plate. Now, at a time of budget shortfalls and unemployment, the state will pay to litigate for the right to discriminate on the basis of the content of such messages. Continue reading “North Carolina Sued For Issuing Pro-Life License Plates While Refusing To Issue Pro-Choice Plates”→
For those who have questioned why we are still losing lives and spending billions in Afghanistan, the latest report from the Human Rights Watch may add to your confusion. It appears that the Afghan and U.S. governments have decided to defeat infamous Islamic militia forces by handing over power to them. Militias accused of horrific abuses have been quietly moved into the police forces in a desperate attempt by both governments to stem attacks from insurgent forces.
Most people fired have a choice word or two about their former employers. It was therefore not surprising that former Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz wanted to let off some steam after she was canned. The legal question is whether it was worth $10 million to Bartz because that is how much it could cost under a standard clause in her contract. She may now have to put her money where he mouth is. Continue reading “What a Yahoo: Former CEO Bartz Could Lose $10 Million For Calling Board A Bunch of “Doofuses””→
David Drumm has already addressed the mistake made by President Barack Obama in his jobs speech to Congress when he called Abraham Lincoln “the founder” of the Republican Party. It is a common mistake, as David points out. However, I am more interested in what appears to be a bit of helpful editing by PBS. The gaffe has mysteriously disappeared like last year’s pledge drive. Continue reading “Controversy Erupts After Obama Gaffe Goes Missing From PBS Transcript”→
Human Rights Watch (HRW), an organization that discovered hundreds of archived documents in Tripoli, said the documents provide evidence of US and UK complicity in torture crimes in Libya during the rule of Col. Muammar Gaddafi. From Human Rights Watch: “Among the files were documents confirming that both the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the United Kingdom’s MI6 sent terrorism suspects to Libya for detention – despite Libya’s notorious record for torturing prisoners.” The documents appear to show that Libyan cooperation with both the Central Intelligence Agency and Britain’s MI-6 agency under Gaddafi was closer than had been acknowledged in the past. According to the New York Times, the CIA sent terrorism suspects to Libya for interrogation at least eight times.