Monday, December 09, 2013
When you take decades to destroy a great city, tough questions will follow-----Pensions in play in Detroit bankruptcy: What's equitable?
And no one in Muskegon county government seems to have a clue what's happening to Detroit.Pensions in play in Detroit bankruptcy: What's equitable? | Crain's Detroit Business:
"All pensioners may have been made equal to other unsecured creditors who hold contracts with Detroit, by a federal bankruptcy court judge — but that may not necessarily put them on equal footing.
Now that Judge Steven Rhodes has found the city's 21,000-plus retirees are no different than many other creditors who have rights under a contract with the city, attorneys expect the city will submit what federal law calls a "fair and equitable plan" to restructure its debt by late February.
But what is equitable, for example, to former city employees who have been retired for years, are physically unable to return to work, do not receive Social Security if they were police officers or firefighters, and received promises from a city that was once in much better shape? "
Can we get those "clunker" cars back? Report: Scientists predict a century of global cooling
Report: Scientists predict a century of global cooling | The Daily Caller:"German scientists found that two naturally occurring cycles will combine to lower global temperatures during the 21st century, eventually dropping to levels corresponding with the “little ice age” of 1870.
“Due to the de Vries cycle, the global temperature will drop until 2100 to a value corresponding to the ‘little ice age’ of 1870,” write German scientists Horst-Joachim Luedecke and Carl-Otto Weiss of the European Institute for Climate and Energy."
Welcome to Obamacare-----New Affordable Care US health plans will exclude top hospitals
New Affordable Care US health plans will exclude top hospitals - FT.com:"Americans who are buying insurance plans over online exchanges, under what is known as Obamacare, will have limited access to some of the nation’s leading hospitals, including two world-renowned cancer centres.
Amid a drive by insurers to limit costs, the majority of insurance plans being sold on the new healthcare exchanges in New York, Texas, and California, for example, will not offer patients’ access to Memorial Sloan Kettering in Manhattan or MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, two top cancer centres, or Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, one of the top research and teaching hospitals in the country."
Why not $100/hr? -----The True Cost of a Higher Minimum Wage
The True Cost of a Higher Minimum Wage - Zachary Karabell - The Atlantic:"What’s not clear, however, is whether mandating a higher wage will do anything to change that. Nearly 20 states have a higher minimum wage than the federal rate.
That means that the federal law has little effect in wide swaths of the country.
What’s more, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 5 percent of all workers are paid at or less than the current minimum wage.
Thus, increasing it will make precious little difference in most people’s lives.
.....Under a higher minimum wage, a significant number of companies would likely trim payrolls in order to maintain profits."
"Choice" is an option...if you're rich------You Want to Keep Your Doctor? ‘You Can Pay for It,’ Says Obamacare Architect
You Want to Keep Your Doctor? ‘You Can Pay for It,’ Says Obamacare Architect | CNS News:"Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, a former health policy adviser in the Obama White House, grudgingly admitted on Sunday that President Obama did promise the American people that they could keep their doctors if they liked them under Obamcare.
“No one guaranteed you that your premium wouldn't increase,” Emanuel, a medical doctor, told Fox News Sunday.
“The president guaranteed me I could keep my doctor,” Chris Wallace told Emanuel.
“And if you want to, you can pay for it,” Emanuel responded.
“As a matter of fact, choice is something we all understand, and we all understand that for more choice, more benefits, you have to pay more.”"
This plan will work. Unless the democrats and unions stop it.Paul unveils plan for Detroit 'economic freedom zone'
Paul unveils plan for Detroit 'economic freedom zone' | The Detroit News
Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand Paul unveiled Thursday his plan to save Detroit two days after a judge officially declared the Motor City bankrupt.
Paul, widely considered a 2016 potential presidential candidate, said he will introduce legislation Monday to create “economic freedom zones” by dramatically lowering taxes in depressed areas and loosen visa rules to encourage foreign entrepreneurs to immigrate to the city.
“We hope to create taxes so low you essentially are able to bail yourselves out,” Paul said Thursday in a conference call outlining his plan."
Obama's america--Hate-criminal--Waitress Accused of Lying About Anti-Gay Customers Denying Her a Tip Now Out of a Job
I wonder how many lawyers have contacted he about an unfair firing lawsuit.
Waitress Accused of Lying About Anti-Gay Customers Denying Her a Tip Now Out of a Job | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Morales received more than $3,000 in donations via PayPal, Gothamist reported, and promised to donate the money to the Wounded Warriors (which she hadn’t as of this week).
Some individuals have indicated receiving refunds from Morales after her story began falling apart, Gothamist added.
(The couple whom she accused of not leaving a tip and leaving an anti-gay note instead presented a receipt with a tip and no note as evidence of Morales’ apparent hoax.)"
Waitress Accused of Lying About Anti-Gay Customers Denying Her a Tip Now Out of a Job | Video | TheBlaze.com:"Morales received more than $3,000 in donations via PayPal, Gothamist reported, and promised to donate the money to the Wounded Warriors (which she hadn’t as of this week).
Some individuals have indicated receiving refunds from Morales after her story began falling apart, Gothamist added.
(The couple whom she accused of not leaving a tip and leaving an anti-gay note instead presented a receipt with a tip and no note as evidence of Morales’ apparent hoax.)"
Anyone hear from Al Sharpon on this? Veteren Jim Vester murdered after arranging to buy iPad from Craigslist
I assume if Obama had any sons they'd look just like these two scumbags......Veteren Jim Vester murdered after arranging to buy iPad from Craigslist | Mail Online:
"Tyron Kincade, 19, and his brother Tyshaune Kincade, 18, have been arrested and charged with Vester's murder"
This ain't good-----Japan Press: "China-Japan War To Break Out In January"
Japan Press: "China-Japan War To Break Out In January" | Zero Hedge
From Sunday Mainichi's "Sino-Japanese war to break out in January," to Flash's "Simulated breakout of war over the Senkakus," the nationalism (that Kyle Bass so notably commented on) is rising.
Following China's unveiling of its air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea, overlapping a large expanse of territory also claimed by Japan, the Japanese media has, as The Japan Times reports, had a dramatically visceral reaction on the various scenarios of a shooting war.
From Sunday Mainichi's "Sino-Japanese war to break out in January," to Flash's "Simulated breakout of war over the Senkakus," the nationalism (that Kyle Bass so notably commented on) is rising.
Which side, wonders Shukan Gendai ominously, will respond to a provocation by pulling the trigger?
The game of chicken between two great superpowers is about to begin.
Five out of nine weekly magazines that went on sale last Monday and Tuesday contained scenarios that raised the possibility of a shooting war.
No more potash? Potential ... with a grain of salt
Well, we still got pot in Michigan.Potential ... with a grain of salt | Crain's Detroit Business:
"Only weeks after a swirl of media reports trumpeted that potash soon may become a $65 billion industry for Michigan, the owner of the only potash mine in the state stopped production of the mineral and laid off a dozen workers."
They STILL had a statue of Lenin?!!! Protesters in Kiev Topple Lenin Statue as Rallies Grow
Protesters in Kiev Topple Lenin Statue as Rallies Grow - NYTimes.com:"KIEV, Ukraine — Protesters in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, toppled the city’s main statue of Lenin on Sunday and then pounded it into chips with a sledgehammer as a crowd chanted and cheered.
The destruction of the statue was a cathartic moment in the biggest day of demonstrations so far against President Viktor F. Yanukovich’s turn away from Europe."
Sunday, December 08, 2013
Face it. Our rulers just don't like us to have a choice about anything. Except killing babies.........New York City proposal seeks ban on electronic cigarette use in public
It's the look they don't like?New York City proposal seeks ban on electronic cigarette use in public | Fox News:
"New Yorkers who say electronic cigarettes helped them quit smoking asked city lawmakers at a hearing this week not to ban the nicotine inhalers from restaurants, workplaces and other indoor spaces, saying there isn't enough evidence they pose a health risk to justify their exclusion.
"The facts are that this isn't smoking," Jesse Gaddis, a representative from Brooklyn-based Bedford Slims, an e-cigarette company, toldThe New York Post as he exhaled wasps of white mist during his testimony. "This is vapor."
Another attendee at Wednesday's meeting said, "These people would try to get you to prohibit penicillin ... if there was grant money in it.""
The predictive powers of media-----1993 Independent Article About Osama Bin Laden
These MSM bozos couldn't predict tomorrow's weather..... oh, wait. They have. And they're wrong about that too!
1993 Independent Article About Osama Bin Laden - Business Insider:
"This article from Dec. 6, 1993, by Robert Fisk of The Independent, titled, "Anti-Soviet warrior puts his army on the road to peace," is stunning to consider 20 years later.
Osama bin Laden, fresh off the US-backed mujahadin's victory over Russia in 1989, flew his men, materials and money down to Sudan, ostensibly to start public works projects.
When asked if they were militant training camps, the "Saudi entrepreneur" and future leader of al Qaeda told Fisk: "I am a construction engineer and an agriculturalist. If I had training camps here in Sudan, I couldn't possibly do this job.""
1993 Independent Article About Osama Bin Laden - Business Insider:
"This article from Dec. 6, 1993, by Robert Fisk of The Independent, titled, "Anti-Soviet warrior puts his army on the road to peace," is stunning to consider 20 years later.Osama bin Laden, fresh off the US-backed mujahadin's victory over Russia in 1989, flew his men, materials and money down to Sudan, ostensibly to start public works projects.
When asked if they were militant training camps, the "Saudi entrepreneur" and future leader of al Qaeda told Fisk: "I am a construction engineer and an agriculturalist. If I had training camps here in Sudan, I couldn't possibly do this job.""
British writer: Michigan State beats Ohio State with class, celebrates with class
British writer: Michigan State beats Ohio State with class, celebrates with class | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:US-based British sportswriter Simon Veness revels in a win for the ‘good guys’ in Indianapolis.
We have a saying in British sporting circles – form is temporary, but class is permanent.
And that never seemed like a greater truism afterthe events at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday night.
....And it owed everything to the class of Mark Dantonio, who has – in the eyes of this observer-from-afar – created an atmosphere of nobility in competition and respectfulness in attitude, two qualities that probably seemed as outdated as the idea of 12-win seasons and Rose Bowl bids back in September.
...."At the same time, we wait to see if the apparent hubris of OSU’s leader is affected in defeat, if an upset in this manner counts for anything in Columbus. I may have missed it, but I didn’t see a quoted word from the head coach admitting that the better team carried the day; that the Spartans are deserving of their ticket to Pasadena; anything, in fact, that showed an awareness of a world beyond his own.
So, if Urban Meyer really wants to learn the lessons of his first defeat with the Buckeyes, he needs to look not at the game tape of how his team were substantially and indisputably undermined on the field – but at how the opposite sideline conducted itself off it.
In this case, class may not necessarily be permanent, but it has certainly lasted since November 2006, when Mark Dantonio took up the reins at Spartan Stadium. And it will probably last as long as he fancies the task of pitting MSU against college football’s ‘super-powers.’"
....And it owed everything to the class of Mark Dantonio, who has – in the eyes of this observer-from-afar – created an atmosphere of nobility in competition and respectfulness in attitude, two qualities that probably seemed as outdated as the idea of 12-win seasons and Rose Bowl bids back in September.
...."At the same time, we wait to see if the apparent hubris of OSU’s leader is affected in defeat, if an upset in this manner counts for anything in Columbus. I may have missed it, but I didn’t see a quoted word from the head coach admitting that the better team carried the day; that the Spartans are deserving of their ticket to Pasadena; anything, in fact, that showed an awareness of a world beyond his own.
So, if Urban Meyer really wants to learn the lessons of his first defeat with the Buckeyes, he needs to look not at the game tape of how his team were substantially and indisputably undermined on the field – but at how the opposite sideline conducted itself off it.
In this case, class may not necessarily be permanent, but it has certainly lasted since November 2006, when Mark Dantonio took up the reins at Spartan Stadium. And it will probably last as long as he fancies the task of pitting MSU against college football’s ‘super-powers.’"
WeMog-Tomorrow-Everyone invited
Meet at Picnic Shelter Parking lot (ski trails)
at 12:25 at Hoffmaster State Park,
Monday, December 9.
Boots hit the trail at 12:30.
Plan to hike a couple of hours.
There are lots of options, so group can choose trails.
Happy Hiking
Well-armed young women help spike growing gun-ownership numbers
Well-armed young women help spike growing gun-ownership numbers - Boulder Daily Camera:
The Well Armed Woman -- their slogan is "Where the Feminine and Firearm Meet" -- advertises stylish purses designed for concealed carry.
The Well Armed Woman -- their slogan is "Where the Feminine and Firearm Meet" -- advertises stylish purses designed for concealed carry.
Another online retailer, Pistols & Pumps -- "Concealed and High Heeled" -- offers pink camouflage hats and bra-mounted holsters.
Gungoddess.com -- the name, apparently, is sufficient -- sells a variety of "gun bling," including leopard-print handgun grips and zebra-print ear protection.
Such items may seem odd to some, but these retailers understand their customer base -- a group of young, strong, determined and armed women. And just because their bullets may be fired from pistols with rhinestone-studded grips doesn't mean they shouldn't be taken seriously.
These women are among a growing population of gun owners who fiercely fight for their right to own and carry a gun for self-protection.
Self-reported gun ownership -- among both men and women in the U.S. -- is the highest it has been since 1993.
"A woman with pepper spray is smart, a woman who takes self-defense is prepared, but a woman with a gun is scary," said Rachael Makowski, a 25-year-old nanny in Westminster, Colo.
"And when it comes down to my life or theirs, I want them to be just as afraid of me as I am of them."
7 Nelson Mandela Quotes You Probably Won't See In The U.S. Media
7 Nelson Mandela Quotes You Probably Won't See In The U.S. Media
7. On the U.S. war with Iraq:
“If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world,
it is the United States of America. They don’t care for human beings.”
Via cbsnews.com
6. On Israel:
“Israel should withdraw from all the areas which it won from the Arabs in 1967,
and in particular Israel should withdraw completely from the Golan Heights,
from south Lebanon and from the West Bank.”
Via jweekly.com
5. On the U.S. war with Iraq:
“All that (Mr. Bush) wants is Iraqi oil.”
Via cbsnews.com
4. Mandela on Castro and the Cuban revolution:
“From its earliest days, the Cuban Revolution has also been a source of
inspiration to all freedom-loving people.
We admire the sacrifices of the Cuban people in maintaining their independence
and sovereignty in the face of the vicious imperialist-orquestrated campaign to
destroy the impressive gain made in the Cuban Revolution.
… Long live the Cuban Revolution. Long live comrade Fidel Castro.”
Via lanic.utexas.edu
3. Mandela on Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, his longtime supporter:
“It is our duty to give support to the brother leader … especially in regards
7. On the U.S. war with Iraq:
“If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world,
it is the United States of America. They don’t care for human beings.”
Via cbsnews.com
6. On Israel:
“Israel should withdraw from all the areas which it won from the Arabs in 1967,
and in particular Israel should withdraw completely from the Golan Heights,
from south Lebanon and from the West Bank.”
Via jweekly.com
5. On the U.S. war with Iraq:
“All that (Mr. Bush) wants is Iraqi oil.”
Via cbsnews.com
4. Mandela on Castro and the Cuban revolution:
“From its earliest days, the Cuban Revolution has also been a source of
inspiration to all freedom-loving people.
We admire the sacrifices of the Cuban people in maintaining their independence
and sovereignty in the face of the vicious imperialist-orquestrated campaign to
destroy the impressive gain made in the Cuban Revolution.
… Long live the Cuban Revolution. Long live comrade Fidel Castro.”
Via lanic.utexas.edu
3. Mandela on Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, his longtime supporter:
“It is our duty to give support to the brother leader … especially in regards
to the sanctions which are not hitting just him, they are hitting the
ordinary masses of the people … our African brothers and sisters.”Via finalcall.com
2. On the U.S. preparing to invade Iraq in a 2002 interview with Newsweek:
“If you look at those matters, you will come to the conclusion
that the attitude of the United States of America is a threat to world peace.”
Via newsweek.com
1. On a Palestinian state:
“The UN took a strong stand against apartheid; and over the years,
an international consensus was built, which helped to bring an end to
this iniquitous system.
But we know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the
freedom of the Palestinians.”
2. On the U.S. preparing to invade Iraq in a 2002 interview with Newsweek:
“If you look at those matters, you will come to the conclusion
that the attitude of the United States of America is a threat to world peace.”
Via newsweek.com
1. On a Palestinian state:
“The UN took a strong stand against apartheid; and over the years,
an international consensus was built, which helped to bring an end to
this iniquitous system.
But we know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the
freedom of the Palestinians.”
Via cbsnews.com
The World's 18 Strangest Airports
Airports and Architecture - The World's 18 Strangest Airports - Popular Mechanics8: Princess Juliana International Airport
Simpson Bay, Saint Maarten
Our president is a serial liar and no one in the media seems to care------Twisting the truth till you cry uncle
Carr: Twisting the truth till you cry uncle | Boston Herald:"But the confusion was understandable, Baghdad Jay Carney explained at the White House this week.
Back when the question of his relationship with Uncle Omar arose, after his pinch for drunken driving in Framingham in 2011, Carney said the staff “looked at the record, including the president’s book, and there was no evidence that they had met.”
Consider that for a moment.
The aides consulted “the book” — “Dreams from My Father.”
This is Barack’s “autobiography,” which a convicted Weatherman terrorist now claims to have ghostwritten.
It includes what is now acknowledged to be a “composite girlfriend,” and was peddled to publishers with a description of Obama as Kenyan-born, although he now claims to have been born in Hawaii, or as he calls it, “Asia.”
“Dreams from My Father” — obviously, an extremely credible source."
Embezzle a half million? No problemo in Flint Michigan-----Career Alliance saga ends with no jail time for those who misused $500,000 in taxpayer money
With zero penalty for the theft, why not try it again?Career Alliance saga ends with no jail time for those who misused $500,000 in taxpayer money | MLive.com
"FLINT, MI -- A scandal that took down the head of a public agency, a Flint police chief and his father, as well as a former Flint School Board member has come to end with more than $500,000 in taxpayer money misused and not a single day of jail for anyone involved.
Pamela Loving, the former head of Career Alliance who a federal judge called the leader of the "criminal episode," was ordered to pay back more than a half-million dollars after she admitted to embezzling tax-payer money and funding a program led by a relative without approval of the federal government.
U.S. District Judge Mark A. Goldsmith, however, spared Loving from more than a year in prison and instead placed her on five years' probation with a year of house arrest.
Loving, who is unemployed and has filed for bankruptcy, was also ordered to pay $586,000 in restitution."
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