Saturday, June 09, 2018
Retired Secret Service agent had warned Stoneman Douglas about security failures - Sun Sentinel
Retired Secret Service agent had warned Stoneman Douglas about security failures - Sun Sentinel"Two months before the massacre at Stoneman Douglas High School, a retired Secret Service agent warned administrators that the school could be vulnerable to a gunman.
Gates were unlocked. Students did not wear identification badges.
A fire alarm could send students streaming into the halls.
Active-shooter drills were inadequate, he said.
The retired agent, Steve Wexler, said he made his point by strolling through the school with Post-it notes, attaching them to places his bullets or knife would land if he were an intruder.
No one stopped him, he said.
“I said, ‘This stuff is blatantly obvious. You’ve got to fix this,’” Wexler said.
He never heard another word from the district, he said..."
Read all.
Happening EVERYWHERE in the public sector---Disgusting!-----30,000 Six-Figure Illinois Educators Cost Taxpayers $3.7 Billion
30,000 Six-Figure Illinois Educators Cost Taxpayers $3.7 Billion
"We mapped the exclusive club of 30,000 Illinois educators with either salaries or pension payouts greater than $100,000 costing taxpayers $3.7 billion annually.
"We mapped the exclusive club of 30,000 Illinois educators with either salaries or pension payouts greater than $100,000 costing taxpayers $3.7 billion annually.
Illinois teachers are starting their three-month summer break. But when it comes to teacher salaries, there’s no break for taxpayers. Last week, the Illinois legislature passed a new mandate requiring base pay of $40,000 for Illinois educators. (Cue the teacher’s union cheering.)
...Thanks to an interactive tool we’ve built at our government transparency web site, OpenTheBooks.com, every taxpayer in Illinois and across the country can search the $100,000 Club at the teachers' retirement system by zip code.
Want to see who in your backyard makes a $150,000 salary for teaching drivers ed or PE classes?
What about the retired art teacher with a $100,000+ lifetime pension annuity?
It’s a game the whole taxpaying family can play! Use it and be amazed – and also help out reform-minded legislators and Gov. Bruce Rauner’s team identify waste.
Click here to access the map below.
...Thanks to an interactive tool we’ve built at our government transparency web site, OpenTheBooks.com, every taxpayer in Illinois and across the country can search the $100,000 Club at the teachers' retirement system by zip code.
Want to see who in your backyard makes a $150,000 salary for teaching drivers ed or PE classes?
What about the retired art teacher with a $100,000+ lifetime pension annuity?
It’s a game the whole taxpaying family can play! Use it and be amazed – and also help out reform-minded legislators and Gov. Bruce Rauner’s team identify waste.
Click here to access the map below.
Using our interactive mapping tool, quickly review (by zip code) the 30,000 Illinois educators who make more than $100,000 – either from a salary or public pension. Just zoom in, click a pin (zip code) and scroll down to see the results rendered in the chart beneath the map.
Here’s how it breaks down in just three of 850 school districts:
Here’s how it breaks down in just three of 850 school districts:
- In Township HSD 214 in Arlington Heights, 617 working educators made $100,000 or more in addition to 578 retirees receiving six-figure annual pension payouts.
- In Palatine Township HS 211, there were 594 educators pulling down six-figure salaries and 533 retirees receiving six-figure lifetime pensions. Read the superintendent’s response here.
- In Naperville CSD 203, there were 374 educators making $100,000 or more while another 278 retirees received six-figure pension payouts.
In Illinois, some of the worst performing school districts award the largest salaries – and it hasn’t helped student scores.
In many cases, administrators making $300,000 or even $400,000 have districts where a majority of their students come from families receiving public aid, living in substitute care, or are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.
In many cases, administrators making $300,000 or even $400,000 have districts where a majority of their students come from families receiving public aid, living in substitute care, or are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.
Consider these examples:
- Troy Paraday made $407,145 as the superintendent of Calumet CSD 155 even though enrollment is just 1,200 students. Meanwhile, the kids are struggling. Nearly 70 percent of are from low-income families and just 16 percent are considered ready for the next level. Paraday’s paycheck is up from the $384,138 last year.
- Joyce Carmine, former superintendent of Park Forest SD 163, retired on a first-year pension of $290,526 (2017). Last year, Carmine earned the #1 salary in the entire system with a massive salary increase from $81,382 (2000) to $398,229 (2016). She earned this largess even though less than one out of four students in her district were considered ready for the next level and 88 percent of students were considered low-income.
- Gregory Jackson received $340,405 (up from $325,208 last year) as the superintendent of Ford Heights SD 169. Why is Jackson making a massive salary when just one in five children in his district passed the statewide PARCC exam? Further, there are just 434 students in the district, and 97 percent are from low-income homes.
- Arthur Culver made $265,000 as the superintendent of East St. Louis SD 189, even though just six percent of students are considered ready for the next level and 96 percent of students are from low-income homes.
Review the Top 500 Illinois teacher and administrator salaries in 2017, click here..."
Much, much more, read all!
Much, much more, read all!
The Obama Administration LIED To The American People. Repeatedly. Here's The Proof. | Daily Wire
The Obama Administration LIED To The American People. Repeatedly. Here's The Proof. | Daily Wire:
The Obama administration lied to the American people.
A lot.
The latest proof of their dishonesty: according to the Associated Press, the Obama administration attempted to end-around its own sanctions in order to give cash to the worst terror sponsor on the planet. Here’s the report:
The Obama administration lied to the American people.
A lot.
The latest proof of their dishonesty: according to the Associated Press, the Obama administration attempted to end-around its own sanctions in order to give cash to the worst terror sponsor on the planet. Here’s the report:
Your tax dollars sponsering hate-----Study: Dog parks are manifestations of rape culture and oppression - The College Fix
Study: Dog parks are manifestations of rape culture and oppression - The College Fix
"If you’re a dog owner, maybe, just maybe, a couple of things that come to mind when you take ‘ol Spot to the dog park are rape culture and non-heterosexual “performativity.”
Her paper, “Human reactions to rape culture and queer performativity at urban dog parks in Portland, Oregon,” discusses the “emerging themes in human and canine interactive behavioral patterns in urban dog parks” in order to gain a better understanding about people’s decisions and “emergent assumptions around gender, race, and sexuality.”
"If you’re a dog owner, maybe, just maybe, a couple of things that come to mind when you take ‘ol Spot to the dog park are rape culture and non-heterosexual “performativity.”
What’s that?
You don’t consider such things when you’re walking the pup?
No worries, then.
The Portland Ungendering Research Initiative’s Helen Wilson is here to clue you in.
The PhD in feminist studies writes that dog parks are “petri dishes for canine ‘rape culture.’”...
Read all if you can stomach it.They offer a very public view into the ways human companions foster and perpetuate masculinist systems of communal oppression across species and in public spaces. The cultural norms operating within and upon these spaces form microcultures where acceptable and unacceptable behavior in human communities may be reflected in the way human companions construct their interactions with dogs, particularly in regard to rape culture and queering, and a-/moral interpretations of such behaviors and their human analogues under the assumptions of rape culture..."
Aussie Alexander Downer from Spygate Involved in Sale of Australian Uranium to Same Russian Company that Purchased Uranium One
Aussie Alexander Downer from Spygate Involved in Sale of Australian Uranium to Same Russian Company that Purchased Uranium One
Aussie Alexander Downer from Spygate fame not only signed a deal to provide $25 million to the Clinton Foundation but he was also involved in the sale of uranium to the same Russian state owned company that later purchased Uranium One.
Australian Alexander Downer has a storied past.
In 2006 he signed an agreement to provide $25 million to the corrupt Clinton Foundation –The Australian diplomat whose tip in 2016 prompted the Russia-Trump investigation previously arranged one of the largest foreign donations to Bill and Hillary Clinton’s charitable efforts, documents show.Former Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer’s role in securing $25 million in aid from his country to help the Clinton Foundation fight AIDS is chronicled in decade-old government memos archived on the Australian foreign ministry’s website.Downer and former President Clinton jointly signed a Memorandum of Understanding in February 2006 that spread out the grant money over four years for a project to provide screening and drug treatment to AIDS patients in Asia.
Next Downer in 2007 signed an agreement for Australia to provide Australian uranium to Russian company Rosatom –..."
Read all!
Read all!
Ignoring the Samantha Power bombshell
Ignoring the Samantha Power bombshell:
Why is Samantha Power herself so seemingly unconcerned about this violation of public trust?��Wouldn't you expect this brave journalist, the winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the champion of the people, to be at least a little bit curious as to exactly who it was in the Obama administration who stole her passwords and used her security clearance in such a blatantly undemocratic and unlawful manner?
And wouldn't you expect her to speak up about it?
And wouldn't you expect her to speak up about it?
So filled with hate-----MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace slammed for asking if Melania, Ivanka are 'dead inside' or 'paid off' | Fox News
MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace slammed for asking if Melania, Ivanka are 'dead inside' or 'paid off' | Fox News
"MSNBC anchor Nicolle Wallace is under fire for making a derogatory comment Thursday about first lady Melania Trump and first daughter Ivanka, asking if they are “dead inside” or simply being “paid off.”
"MSNBC anchor Nicolle Wallace is under fire for making a derogatory comment Thursday about first lady Melania Trump and first daughter Ivanka, asking if they are “dead inside” or simply being “paid off.”
On her show "Deadline: White House" Wallace pondered how women close to the president cope with the ongoing allegations surrounding adult film star Stormy Daniels, who claims to have had a consensual sexual encounter with Trump over a decade ago (Trump denies the allegation).
“Are they just the most stoic human beings, are they numb, are they dead inside, are they paid off, I mean, what’s their deal?” Wallace asked.
The comment was immediately panned across social media and by conservative commentators..."
Sick. Read/view on.
Sick. Read/view on.
Sucking Carbon Dioxide from the Air to Produce Gasoline? - Hit & Run : Reason.com
Sucking Carbon Dioxide from the Air to Produce Gasoline? - Hit & Run : Reason.com:
"Recycling the carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere by turning it back into fuel would help slow the process of global warming.
An earlier estimate calculated that direct air capture (DAC) of carbon dioxide would be prohibitively expensive at least $600 per ton.
But now Carbon Engineering, located in the British Columbia, has published a detailed engineering and cost analysis of its pilot DAC plant that suggests that its technology can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for $94 to $232 per ton.
The low-end figure is based on a scenario in which electrolysis using no-carbon energy sources breaks apart water to provide both the oxygen and—crucially—the hydrogen needed to combine with the captured carbon dioxide to produce hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline and diesel..."
Read on.
An earlier estimate calculated that direct air capture (DAC) of carbon dioxide would be prohibitively expensive at least $600 per ton.
But now Carbon Engineering, located in the British Columbia, has published a detailed engineering and cost analysis of its pilot DAC plant that suggests that its technology can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for $94 to $232 per ton.
The low-end figure is based on a scenario in which electrolysis using no-carbon energy sources breaks apart water to provide both the oxygen and—crucially—the hydrogen needed to combine with the captured carbon dioxide to produce hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline and diesel..."
Read on.
The lunacy of kicking ‘beauty’ out of the Miss America pageant
The lunacy of kicking ‘beauty’ out of the Miss America pageant:
The Miss America Organization announced this week that it will no longer judge women on their “outward physical appearance.”
...If you hadn’t noticed, physical beauty is a huge part of our economy and our culture.
And before you go on about this showing how sexist or “lookist” American society is, physical beauty is a huge part of literally every culture on earth and has been for all time.
...Moreover, this is not because it’s a “man’s world.”
The glossy women’s magazines are run by women and read by women.
...The point I’m getting at is that beauty pageants are competitions over who is the most beautiful of the bunch.
...No one asks bodybuilders how they would bring about world peace.
Hell, I offer my opinions for a living and I’ve never been asked that question.
Contestants on “American Idol,” ‘‘America’s Got Talent,” ‘‘American Ninja Warrior,” ‘‘Top Chef,” ‘‘Shark Tank” and “America’s Next Top Model,” not to mention Olympic athletes, hope to be the best at what they’re there for.
They aren’t graded on how they answer questions about the Mueller investigation or the Charlottesville white supremacist rally, as happened at the Miss America pageant last year.
...In other words, they want to prove that women — attractive or, presumably, otherwise — can be smart, confident activists and leaders.
Did we not know this already?
Why not just call it the Woke Olympics and be done with it?..."
Read all.
The Miss America Organization announced this week that it will no longer judge women on their “outward physical appearance.”
...If you hadn’t noticed, physical beauty is a huge part of our economy and our culture.
And before you go on about this showing how sexist or “lookist” American society is, physical beauty is a huge part of literally every culture on earth and has been for all time.
...Moreover, this is not because it’s a “man’s world.”The glossy women’s magazines are run by women and read by women.
...The point I’m getting at is that beauty pageants are competitions over who is the most beautiful of the bunch.
...No one asks bodybuilders how they would bring about world peace.
Hell, I offer my opinions for a living and I’ve never been asked that question.
Contestants on “American Idol,” ‘‘America’s Got Talent,” ‘‘American Ninja Warrior,” ‘‘Top Chef,” ‘‘Shark Tank” and “America’s Next Top Model,” not to mention Olympic athletes, hope to be the best at what they’re there for.
They aren’t graded on how they answer questions about the Mueller investigation or the Charlottesville white supremacist rally, as happened at the Miss America pageant last year.
...In other words, they want to prove that women — attractive or, presumably, otherwise — can be smart, confident activists and leaders.
Did we not know this already?
Why not just call it the Woke Olympics and be done with it?..."
Read all.
LOOK OUT: Dems In Senate And House Propose National Firearms Licensing System | Daily Wire
LOOK OUT: Dems In Senate And House Propose National Firearms Licensing System | Daily Wire:
For the fourth time in 11 years, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) introduced The Blair Holt Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act; he had already introduced a form of the bill in 2007, 2009, and 2013. According to Rush’s website, the bill would “prohibit unlicensed gun-ownership and transferring or receiving firearms without a valid firearms license, as well as direct the Attorney General to establish and maintain a federal record of sale system.” It would also require universal background checks for all purchases or transfers of firearms.
Seattle cracks down on renters, free speech – and common sense. Good luck trying to rent an apartment | Fox News
Seattle cracks down on renters, free speech – and common sense. Good luck trying to rent an apartment | Fox News:
"The Seattle City Council seems to think the right to speak is a privilege it can grant or withhold at its pleasure.
It has slapped a year-long ban on the use of certain housing websites that allow renters to place bids on advertised rental housing, while it reviews the sites.
Officials say they fear the sites might violate local housing laws or inflate housing costs, so the City Council wants to study the sites while forbidding their use in the meantime.
While city leaders try to figure things out, landlords are barred from posting ads on the sites, and renters can’t even do a simple search for Seattle housing on the sites.
...the City Council has resurrected a frightening government power – the power to censor speech until the government has decided to approve it.
In First Amendment parlance, a law that forces speakers to receive government approval in advance of speaking (including publishing) is called a prior restraint – the most insidious form of government speech restriction..."
Read all.
It has slapped a year-long ban on the use of certain housing websites that allow renters to place bids on advertised rental housing, while it reviews the sites.
Officials say they fear the sites might violate local housing laws or inflate housing costs, so the City Council wants to study the sites while forbidding their use in the meantime.
While city leaders try to figure things out, landlords are barred from posting ads on the sites, and renters can’t even do a simple search for Seattle housing on the sites.
...the City Council has resurrected a frightening government power – the power to censor speech until the government has decided to approve it.
In First Amendment parlance, a law that forces speakers to receive government approval in advance of speaking (including publishing) is called a prior restraint – the most insidious form of government speech restriction..."
Read all.
ILLINOIS IS BETTER OFF BANKRUPT: “The best hope for a failed state such as Illinois is to let the st…
Instapundit » Blog Archive » ILLINOIS IS BETTER OFF BANKRUPT: “The best hope for a failed state such as Illinois is to let the st…
"ILLINOIS IS BETTER OFF BANKRUPT:
“The best hope for a failed state such as Illinois is to let the state go bankrupt.”
"ILLINOIS IS BETTER OFF BANKRUPT:
“The best hope for a failed state such as Illinois is to let the state go bankrupt.”Of course they haven’t, because they’re expecting another bailout."The State of Illinois incurred deficits reaching nearly $15 billion in 2017, and those deficits are projected to double to $30 billion in 2018. Illinois has also accumulated hundreds of billions in unfunded liabilities in public sector pension and health-care plans. This has exposed local jurisdictions to the risk of default or bankruptcy. In response, Illinois has issued large bailouts, further weakening the finances of the state’s government. The courts have exacerbated this problem by ruling the Illinois Constitution mandates state bailouts for public sector pension and health plans.Fiscal rules in Illinois have been ineffective in constraining deficits and debt. Illinois, like 48 other states, has a balanced budget provision in its state constitution. But, in recent years, the state legislature has failed to pass a budget at all — let alone one that would balance revenues and expenditures.
In April 2018, a constitutional amendment to cap the rate of growth in spending at the rate of growth in the state economy was introduced in Illinois’ legislature. A majority of Illinois state legislators have yet to show support for such a fiscal rule.
History for June 9
History for June 9 - On-This-Day.com:
Cole Porter (Cole Albert Porter) 1891 - Composer, songwriter, Les Paul (Lester William Polsfuss) 1915 - Musician, songwriter, inventor (solid-body electric guitar), Dick Vitale (Richard J. "Dick" Vitale) 1940 - Basketball sportscaster
Michael J. Fox 1961 - Actor ("Family Ties"), Johnny Depp (John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II) 1963 - Actor, musician, Natalie Portman 1981 - Actress ("Star Wars" movie series)
1534 - Jacques Cartier became the first to sail into the river he named Saint Lawrence.
1790 - John Barry copyrighted "Philadelphia Spelling Book." It was the first American book to be copyrighted.
1860 - The Ms. Ann Stevens book "Malaeska, the Indian Wife of the White Hunter" was offered for sale for a dime. It was the first published "dime novel."
1931 - Robert H. Goddard patented a rocket-fueled aircraft design.
1934 - Donald Duck made his debut in the Silly Symphonies cartoon "The Wise Little Hen."
1943 - The withholding tax on payrolls was authorized by the U.S. Congress.
1945 - Japanese Premier Kantaro Suzuki declared that Japan would fight to the last rather than accept unconditional surrender.
1959 - The first ballistic missile carrying submarine, the USS George Washington, was launched.
Friday, June 08, 2018
WATCH: Pelosi Throws Jab At Trump, Knocks Herself Out | Daily Wire
WATCH: Pelosi Throws Jab At Trump, Knocks Herself Out | Daily Wire: House
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi misled a group of reporters during a press briefing on Thursday as she downplayed the current unemployment rate and said what really matters is consumer confidence — something she suggested that only the Democrats' plan can increase — despite being at an 18-year high.
Minnesota Public Library Announces Cross-Dressing Series for Children as Part of Response to Trump Policy | Intellectual Takeout
Minnesota Public Library Announces Cross-Dressing Series for Children as Part of Response to Trump Policy | Intellectual Takeout:
"Using public infrastructure as a vehicle to advance social justice morality is not new in Minnesota.
In 2017, one of the state’s top school districts made national news after it was revealed officials had initiated a “sweeping initiative that reordered the district’s mission from academic excellence for all students to ‘racial equity.’”
"Using public infrastructure as a vehicle to advance social justice morality is not new in Minnesota.
In 2017, one of the state’s top school districts made national news after it was revealed officials had initiated a “sweeping initiative that reordered the district’s mission from academic excellence for all students to ‘racial equity.’”
A look at the “We Belong Together” website shows a heavy emphasis on drag culture—below is a snapshot of their recommended reading—a fact that reinforced some Minnesota parents’ concerns that local governments are attempting to indoctrinate children.
“This agenda is just coming on so strong,” one stay-at-home mom told me.
“A very sad day has arrived when we are handing our children over with their innocence and their pure minds and filling them with such confusion.”
“A very sad day has arrived when we are handing our children over with their innocence and their pure minds and filling them with such confusion.”
Several Minnesota parents I spoke to expressed concerns about these efforts. None, however, would go on record.
A half-hour after taking the above quote, I received a correspondence from the woman’s husband. “With respect, we decline to publicly comment on this piece,” he told me.
How can one express grave concern one moment but decline to take a public stance the next? The answer is simple: fear...
Read all!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)