PHOENIX (AP) — Republican Gov. Jan Brewer faced intensifying pressure Monday from CEOs, politicians in Washington and state lawmakers in her own party to veto a bill that would allow business owners with strongly held religious beliefs to deny service to gays and lesbiansTuesday, February 25, 2014
Pressure mounts over Arizona bill opposed by gays - Yahoo News
"Pressure mounts over Arizona bill opposed by gays"
PHOENIX (AP) — Republican Gov. Jan Brewer faced intensifying pressure Monday from CEOs, politicians in Washington and state lawmakers in her own party to veto a bill that would allow business owners with strongly held religious beliefs to deny service to gays and lesbians
PHOENIX (AP) — Republican Gov. Jan Brewer faced intensifying pressure Monday from CEOs, politicians in Washington and state lawmakers in her own party to veto a bill that would allow business owners with strongly held religious beliefs to deny service to gays and lesbians
Great idea-----Detroit Tigers introduce dynamic ticket pricing for 2014 season
Detroit Tigers introduce dynamic ticket pricing for 2014 season | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"There is one week until Detroit Tigers’ individual game tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 1.
And new this season, the Tigers are introducing ‘dynamic ticket pricing,’ which will either increase or decrease prices due to the demand of the game.
As reported by the Free Press last week, the Tigers are planning to announce the ticket pricing system today.
“Dynamic pricing is based on consumer demand and generally affords fans who buy early to save more,” Duane McLean, executive vice president of business operations for the Tigers, said. “With dynamic pricing you could see the value of ticket prices increase and decrease based on demand. Season tickets are not affected by dynamic pricing and continue to offer the most significant savings whereas dynamic pricing more accurately prices tickets for individual games.”
Individual ticket prices range from $9-95, depending on the game. The lowest price seat last season was $12."
"There is one week until Detroit Tigers’ individual game tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 1.And new this season, the Tigers are introducing ‘dynamic ticket pricing,’ which will either increase or decrease prices due to the demand of the game.
As reported by the Free Press last week, the Tigers are planning to announce the ticket pricing system today.
“Dynamic pricing is based on consumer demand and generally affords fans who buy early to save more,” Duane McLean, executive vice president of business operations for the Tigers, said. “With dynamic pricing you could see the value of ticket prices increase and decrease based on demand. Season tickets are not affected by dynamic pricing and continue to offer the most significant savings whereas dynamic pricing more accurately prices tickets for individual games.”
Individual ticket prices range from $9-95, depending on the game. The lowest price seat last season was $12."
After The Floods: Why Did The Met Office Forecast A Dry Winter?
After The Floods: Why Did The Met Office Forecast A Dry Winter?
This winter, the UK has experienced some of the wettest and stormiest weather ever recorded.
These storms and floods raise the question about whether or not they are linked to climate change. Today, a more pertinent question has arisen:
Why did the Met Office actually forecast a dry winter with below average precipitation?
To answer this question we need to recall the two very dry winters of 2011 and 2012.—Benny Peiser,The Global Warming Policy Foundation, 25 February 2014
Its predictions of a “barbecue summer” heralded one of the most miserable holiday seasons ever.
Now the Exeter-based Met Office is scrambling to reclaim its reputation after it was revealed that the agency predicted a “drier than usual” winter – ahead of one of the wettest, stormiest periods in living memory.
As Prime Minister David Cameron was urged to lead a revolution in flood planning by a panel of experts, the weather forecasters were explaining how they got it so very wrong.
“It’s a bit like the science-equivalent of factoring the odds on a horse race.”—Western Daily Press, 23 February 2014
This winter, the UK has experienced some of the wettest and stormiest weather ever recorded.These storms and floods raise the question about whether or not they are linked to climate change. Today, a more pertinent question has arisen:
Why did the Met Office actually forecast a dry winter with below average precipitation?
To answer this question we need to recall the two very dry winters of 2011 and 2012.—Benny Peiser,The Global Warming Policy Foundation, 25 February 2014
Its predictions of a “barbecue summer” heralded one of the most miserable holiday seasons ever.
Now the Exeter-based Met Office is scrambling to reclaim its reputation after it was revealed that the agency predicted a “drier than usual” winter – ahead of one of the wettest, stormiest periods in living memory.
As Prime Minister David Cameron was urged to lead a revolution in flood planning by a panel of experts, the weather forecasters were explaining how they got it so very wrong.
“It’s a bit like the science-equivalent of factoring the odds on a horse race.”—Western Daily Press, 23 February 2014
The shocking truth is that these floods were not a natural disaster, but the result of deliberate policy… This was where November’s forecast came in, because it led the Environment Agency deliberately to flood Southlake Moor in the expectation of a dry winter. When those December and January rains poured down, this large expanse of water-sodden ground blocked the draining to the already horribly silted-up Parrett of a very much larger area of farmland to the east.—Christopher Booker, The Sunday Telegraph, 23 February 2014
PUSHBACK: Former Vice President Cheney calls Hagel’s proposed Army cuts ‘absolutely devastating.’ …
FEBRUARY 25, 2014
PUSHBACK: Former Vice President Cheney calls Hagel’s proposed Army cuts ‘absolutely devastating.’
Ridiculous.
The world is at peace, and sure to remain so for the foreseeable future, under the steady hand of Smart DiplomacyTM.
Ridiculous. The world is at peace, and sure to remain so for the foreseeable future, under the steady hand of Smart DiplomacyTM.
‘Divine intervention’ saves man from black mob
‘Divine intervention’ saves man from black mob
(Editor’s note: Colin Flaherty has done more reporting than any other journalist on what appears to be a nationwide trend of skyrocketing black-on-white crime, violence and abuse. WND features these reports to counterbalance the virtual blackout by the rest of the media due to their concerns that reporting such incidents would be inflammatory or even racist. WND considers it racist not to report racial abuse solely because of the skin color of the perpetrators or victims.) Videos linked or embedded may contain foul language and violence.
(Editor’s note: Colin Flaherty has done more reporting than any other journalist on what appears to be a nationwide trend of skyrocketing black-on-white crime, violence and abuse. WND features these reports to counterbalance the virtual blackout by the rest of the media due to their concerns that reporting such incidents would be inflammatory or even racist. WND considers it racist not to report racial abuse solely because of the skin color of the perpetrators or victims.) Videos linked or embedded may contain foul language and violence.
Only the presence of a Bible over his heart saved the life of a Dayton, Ohio, bus driver who is in the hospital today with injuries suffered during a form of black mob violence called a “polar bear attack.”
Police say the bus driver is lucky to be alive after three black “teenagers” stabbed and shot him. A Bible over the bus driver’s heart stopped two bullets and allowed him to fight off a knife attack from his assailants.
One additional bullet struck him in the leg. The teens also stabbed him in the arm.
The attack came this morning at 5:30 when the driver stopped his bus because of mechanical difficulties.
“As he was outside of the bus assessing how to fix the problem, the three suspects came up to him and said they had to ‘shoot a polar bear,’” police told WHIO news.
Herkimer County men accused of sexually abusing cows
"HERKIMER CO. -- Two Herkimer County men are accused of sexually abusing cows.
35-year-old Michael Jones, of Cedarville Road in Ilion, and 31-year-old Reid Fontaine are charged with sexual misconduct, a misdemeanor.
The owner of a local farm set up video surveillance in his barn, trying to figure out why his cows appeared anxious and were not producing normally.
The owner later contacted State Police after video revealed the cows were being sexually abused.
Police say their investigation found Jones agreed to videotape Fontaine as he tried to have sexual contact with several cows.
Both men were arrested and charged with sexual misconduct.
They were released on an appearance ticket."
Richard Berman: Why Unions Want a Higher Minimum Wage
Richard Berman: Why Unions Want a Higher Minimum Wage - WSJ.com
Organized labor's instantaneous support for President Obama's recent proposal to hike the minimum wage doesn't make much sense at first glance. The average private-sector union member—at least one who still has a job—earns $22 an hour according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That's a far cry from the current $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage, or the $9 per hour the president has proposed. Altruistic solidarity with lower-paid workers isn't the reason for organized labor's cheerleading, either.
The real reason is that some unions and their members directly benefit from minimum wage increases—even when nary a union member actually makes the minimum wage.
The Center for Union Facts analyzed collective-bargaining agreements obtained from the Department of Labor's Office of Labor-Management Standards. The data indicate that a number of unions in the service, retail and hospitality industries peg their base-line wages to the minimum wage.
The Labor Department's collective-bargaining agreements file has a limited number of contracts available, so we were unable to determine how widespread the practice is. But the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union says that pegging its wages to the federal minimum is commonplace. On its website, the UFCW notes that "oftentimes, union contracts are triggered to implement wage hikes in the case of minimum wage increases." Such increases, the UFCW says, are "one of the many advantages of being a union member."
Reuters
The labor contracts that we examined used a variety of methods to trigger the increases. The two most popular formulas were setting baseline union wages as a percentage above the state or federal minimum wage or mandating a flat wage premium above the minimum wage.
Other union contracts stipulate that, following a minimum-wage increase, the union and the employer reopen wage talks. The negotiations could pressure employers and unions to hammer out a new contract, regardless of how long their existing contracts last. Presumably the reopened negotiations could also prompt an employer's demand for union givebacks, but that possibility does not seem to scare the unions.
Minimum-wage hikes are beneficial to unions in other ways. The increases restrict the ability of businesses to hire low-skill workers who might gladly work for lower wages in order to gain experience. Union members thus face less competition from workers who might threaten union jobs.
This view is not speculation. A 2004 study in the Journal of Human Resources by economists William Wascher, Mark Schweitzer and David Neumark determined that lower-wage union workers typically see a boost in employment and earned income following a mandated wage hike. Never mind the corresponding drop in jobs and earned income for nonunion minimum-wage workers. They may have been priced out of the jobs they need, but that is not the union's concern—its members have landed higher wages and reduced competition for jobs.
Such considerations are worth keeping in mind when contemplating the president's wage proposal and the fervent Democratic support for similar and often more ambitious measures, such as Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin's bill to raise the minimum wage to $9.80. Labor unions spent an estimated $174 million on the 2012 election, with 91% of the money going to Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Now many union members could see their paychecks grow as the result of a Democrat-backed mandate—even though the overwhelming majority of scholarly evidence says that these wage increases have a negative effect on employment.
Mr. Berman is the executive director of the Center for Union Facts.
Watch: Ted Nugent Annoys CNN Host by Taking Credit for Getting Piers Morgan’s ‘A** Thrown Out’, Blasting Her Colleagues
Watch: Ted Nugent Annoys CNN Host by Taking Credit for Getting Piers Morgan’s ‘A** Thrown Out’, Blasting Her Colleagues | Video | TheBlaze.com:
"Conservative rocker and NRA board member Ted Nugent took some credit for getting Piers Morgan’s CNN show cancelled during an interview with one of the network’s other anchors, Erin Burnett. His comments came after Burnett asked him if his apology for calling President Barack Obama a “sub-human mongrel” was sincere.
Nugent insisted his apology was serious and also defended himself against claims that his comments were racist in nature.
“We call bad people who are destroying our neighborhoods mongrels,” Nugent said, later adding, “I don’t have a racist bone in my body!”
“For anyone to claim that I’m a racist or it had racist overtones is the typical crap that the propaganda ministry and the media — particularly most of your co-workers there, even though I got Piers Morgan’s a** thrown out, and I’ll do the same with Don Lemon and Wolf Blitzer when I can,” he said."
"Conservative rocker and NRA board member Ted Nugent took some credit for getting Piers Morgan’s CNN show cancelled during an interview with one of the network’s other anchors, Erin Burnett. His comments came after Burnett asked him if his apology for calling President Barack Obama a “sub-human mongrel” was sincere.
Nugent insisted his apology was serious and also defended himself against claims that his comments were racist in nature.
“We call bad people who are destroying our neighborhoods mongrels,” Nugent said, later adding, “I don’t have a racist bone in my body!”
“For anyone to claim that I’m a racist or it had racist overtones is the typical crap that the propaganda ministry and the media — particularly most of your co-workers there, even though I got Piers Morgan’s a** thrown out, and I’ll do the same with Don Lemon and Wolf Blitzer when I can,” he said."
Drug Rationing for Seniors Begins
It happens in EVERY country that enforces government "healthcare".
Drug Rationing for Seniors Begins | The American Spectator:
"Buried beneath the avalanche of recent news reports about the latest Obamacare-mandated funding cuts to the Medicare Advantage (MA) program is a related but far more disturbing story — the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has taken a major step toward rationing medications to the elderly.
Since passage of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, seniors enrolled in the Medicare prescription drug program have been guaranteed access to “all or substantially all” of the drugs in several classes of pharmaceuticals.
President Obama’s health care bureaucrats, however, have proposed removing three of these classes from the “protected” list."
Drug Rationing for Seniors Begins | The American Spectator:
"Buried beneath the avalanche of recent news reports about the latest Obamacare-mandated funding cuts to the Medicare Advantage (MA) program is a related but far more disturbing story — the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has taken a major step toward rationing medications to the elderly.Since passage of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, seniors enrolled in the Medicare prescription drug program have been guaranteed access to “all or substantially all” of the drugs in several classes of pharmaceuticals.
President Obama’s health care bureaucrats, however, have proposed removing three of these classes from the “protected” list."
Top Google Engineer: 15 Years Until Computers Outsmart Humans
Top Google Engineer: 15 Years Until Computers Outsmart Humans | TheBlaze.com:
"Computers will know how to think, flirt and tell jokes within 15 years, and they may do it even better than humans, a famed artificial intelligence scientist is predicting."
See which school districts would receive more in security/technology millage than they contribute
See which school districts would receive more in security/technology millage than they contribute | MLive.com:
Taxes Paid vs. Proceeds Received Under Proposed School Millage
| District | Millage that would be paid | Proceeds that would be received |
| Fruitport | $541,811 | $469,467 |
| Holton | $142,012 | $146,880 |
| Mona Shores | $792,035 | $622,267 |
| Montague | $332,583 | $247,084 |
| Muskegon | $505,635 | $742,135 |
| Muskegon Heights | $113,781 | $0 |
| North Muskegon | $139,679 | $162,588 |
| Oakridge | $169,682 | $311,302 |
| Orchard View | $304,478 | $412,881 |
| Ravenna | $162,855 | $177,869 |
| Reeths-Puffer | $599,068 | $625,414 |
| Whitehall | $456,441 | $342,174 |
Vote or pay $43 MILLION MORE for .... who the heck knows ...... or cares?---------Vote today: 1-mill tax increase for Muskegon County school technology, security on ballot
You know the takers are well organized and will be out in force.
Last millage INCREASE passed with less than 8% of registered voters voting "YES".
Vote today: 1-mill tax increase for Muskegon County school technology, security on ballot | MLive.com: "MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI -- Today is election day for voters in the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District who will decide a tax request to fund technology and security improvements in local school districts.
The 1-mill property tax is for 10 years and would be distributed to 11 public school districts on a per-pupil basis.
The millage is expected to collect $4.3 million per year. ($43 MILLION TOTAL ... and counting) Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m."
Last millage INCREASE passed with less than 8% of registered voters voting "YES".
Vote today: 1-mill tax increase for Muskegon County school technology, security on ballot | MLive.com: "MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI -- Today is election day for voters in the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District who will decide a tax request to fund technology and security improvements in local school districts.
The 1-mill property tax is for 10 years and would be distributed to 11 public school districts on a per-pupil basis.
The millage is expected to collect $4.3 million per year. ($43 MILLION TOTAL ... and counting) Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m."
Iran breaks UN arms embargo with Iraq deal
Iran breaks UN arms embargo with Iraq deal - The Scotsman:
"Iran has signed a deal to sell Iraq arms and ammunition worth £117 million in a move that would break a UN embargo on weapons sales by Tehran.
The agreement was reached at the end of November, documents showed, just weeks after Iraq’s prime minister Nouri al-Maliki returned from Washington, where he lobbied the Obama administration for extra weapons to fight al-Qaeda-linked militants.
Some in Washington are nervous about providing sensitive US military equipment to a country they worry is becoming too close to Iran. Several Iraqi MPs said Mr Maliki had made the deal because he was fed up with delays to US arms deliveries."
"Iran has signed a deal to sell Iraq arms and ammunition worth £117 million in a move that would break a UN embargo on weapons sales by Tehran.The agreement was reached at the end of November, documents showed, just weeks after Iraq’s prime minister Nouri al-Maliki returned from Washington, where he lobbied the Obama administration for extra weapons to fight al-Qaeda-linked militants.
Some in Washington are nervous about providing sensitive US military equipment to a country they worry is becoming too close to Iran. Several Iraqi MPs said Mr Maliki had made the deal because he was fed up with delays to US arms deliveries."
Before you vote today----Five Easy Questions to Ask School Officials
If you don't vote, you are giving $42 MILLION to the schools.What will you get back from that $42 MILLION?
Commentary: Five Easy Questions to Ask School Officials [Michigan Capitol Confidential]:
To help simplify what can often be an overly complex problem, here are five easy questions anyone can ask their school officials.
1. Has your district’s overall spending increased over the past decade?
If the district claims to have “cut” by a certain amount, these “cuts” may be covered up by increased spending in other areas.
2. How much money per pupil did the district receive 10 years ago?
3. How much money per pupil does the district receive today?
For some districts, it may appear that spending has stagnated or even been cut. However, if a district has significantly fewer students today than in the past (see the example of Midland Public Schools above), overall funds may have decreased while per-pupil spending has risen.
For some districts, it may appear that spending has stagnated or even been cut. However, if a district has significantly fewer students today than in the past (see the example of Midland Public Schools above), overall funds may have decreased while per-pupil spending has risen.
4. What are the district’s teachers paying toward their health care?
In 2009, public school teachers in 300 Michigan districts paid nothing to the costs of their own health insurance premiums. In fact, the average contribution for a teacher’s family plan is 4 percent, while the Michigan private-sector average is 21 percent, and the average for federal employees in Michigan is about 25 percent.
5. What is the average salary of a teacher who has been employed by the district for 10 years or more?
Automatic step increases can bring significant pay raises very quickly. See:The Salary History of a Michigan Public School Employee.
Nearly all public school collective bargaining agreements have a “single salary schedule” (or “automatic step increases”) for teacher compensation. The schedule builds in automatic pay raises for employees based only on longevity of employment and the education degree-level achieved.According to Michael Van Beek, the director of education policy for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, “Essentially, this means that teachers would receive a pay increase for every year they remain employed by the district, regardless of their students' performance, the district's financial situation, or the conditions of the state's economy.”Business operators’ right to choose
Business operators’ right to choose:"Should Muslim cab drivers be entitled to refuse to carry passengers who are transporting alcohol?
(Assume that the state has a legal rule that generally provides religious exemptions from generally applicable laws.)
I gave this as an example of a normal controversy religious exemption controversy, but a commenter disagreed:
The cabbie is voluntarily offering an accommodation to the general public, choosing to associate with them, knowing full well they are religiously diverse.
They can’t subsequently rescind that offer of accommodation after applying a religious litmus test to the particular member of the public taking them up on their offer.
To do that they need to limit their association to those who share their religious viewpoint; private car service with a strict [no alcohol] membership requirement or the like.
But offer the general public an accommodation, can’t then rescind the offer because the member of the public doesn’t conform to a religious belief they don’t share.
I think this analysis is unsound, but I’ve found such arguments to be common enough that I thought I’d respond to them here."
This Ominous Video Shows Where The Military Is 'Really' Preparing To Fight
This Ominous Video Shows Where The Military Is 'Really' Preparing To Fight:
"On January 23, 2014, the U.S. Army opened a one-hundred million dollar urban warfare training facility—a so-called “fake city”—on the outskirts of Bowling Green, Virginia.
Despite U.S. Army press releases to the contrary, this is a replica of an American city, complete with American road signs.
According to insiders, the subway even has a logo of that used in Washington, D.C.
The so-called “mosque” described in the press release is plainly an American church."
"On January 23, 2014, the U.S. Army opened a one-hundred million dollar urban warfare training facility—a so-called “fake city”—on the outskirts of Bowling Green, Virginia.
Despite U.S. Army press releases to the contrary, this is a replica of an American city, complete with American road signs.
According to insiders, the subway even has a logo of that used in Washington, D.C.
The so-called “mosque” described in the press release is plainly an American church."
History for February 25 - On-This-Day.com
History for February 25 - On-This-Day.com
1570 - England's Queen Elizabeth I was excommunicated by Pope Pius V.
1836 - Samuel Colt received a patent for a "revolving gun".
1901 - The United States Steel Corp. was incorporated by J.P. Morgan.
1913 - The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified. It authorized a graduated income tax.
1919 - The state of Oregon became the first state to place a tax on gasoline. The tax was 1 cent per gallon.
1928 - The Federal Radio Commission issued the first U.S. television license to Charles Jenkins Laboratories in Washington, DC.
1933 - The aircraft carrier Ranger was launched. It was the first ship in the U.S. Navy to be designed and built from the keel up as an aircraft carrier.
1948 - Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia.
1964 - Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) became world heavyweight boxing champion by defeating Sonny Liston. He was 22 years old.
1986 - Filippino President Ferdinand E. Marcos fled the Philippines after 20 years of rule after a tainted election.
2005 - Dennis Rader was arrested for the BTK serial killings in Wichita, KS. He later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 life prison terms.
Birth anniversary of American statesman John Foster Dulles (1888-1959).
Birth anniversaries of Anthony Burgess (1917-93), George Harrison (1943-2001) and Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919).
1836 - Samuel Colt received a patent for a "revolving gun".
1901 - The United States Steel Corp. was incorporated by J.P. Morgan.
1913 - The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified. It authorized a graduated income tax.
1919 - The state of Oregon became the first state to place a tax on gasoline. The tax was 1 cent per gallon.
1928 - The Federal Radio Commission issued the first U.S. television license to Charles Jenkins Laboratories in Washington, DC.
1933 - The aircraft carrier Ranger was launched. It was the first ship in the U.S. Navy to be designed and built from the keel up as an aircraft carrier.
1948 - Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia.
1964 - Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) became world heavyweight boxing champion by defeating Sonny Liston. He was 22 years old.
1986 - Filippino President Ferdinand E. Marcos fled the Philippines after 20 years of rule after a tainted election.
2005 - Dennis Rader was arrested for the BTK serial killings in Wichita, KS. He later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 life prison terms.
Monday, February 24, 2014
News from The Associated Press
News from The Associated Press: "SEAFARING DRUG SMUGGLERS CHALLENGING COAST GUARD"SAN DIEGO (AP) -- While security has tightened at the U.S. border, drug smugglers are increasingly turning to the high seas.
The area where boats were seized off California and the northwest coast of Mexico tripled to a size comparable to the state of Montana during the 2013 fiscal year, which ended in September. Off South America, traffickers over the years have been traversing territory so big the continental United States could be dropped inside of it.
Pentagon Plans to Shrink Army to Pre-World War II Level - NYTimes.com
Pentagon Plans to Shrink Army to Pre-World War II Level - NYTimes.com:WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel plans to shrink the United States Army to its smallest force since before the World War IIbuildup and eliminate an entire class of Air Force attack jets in a new spending proposal that officials describe as the first Pentagon budget to aggressively push the military off the war footing adopted after the terror attacks of 2001.
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