October 7, 2015

Vigilante shopper goes all wild west in Auburn Hills

AURBURN HILLS, Mich. (WXYZ) - Auburn Hills police are investigating after shots were fired outside the Home Depot on Joslyn Road.

Police say a customer witnessed two suspected shoplifters leaving the store and fired shots at their SUV.

Police say the customer does have a concealed weapons license. Officers say she did shoot out one of the tires on the SUV.

It is not known if she will face charges in the incident. .................(more)

http://www.wxyz.com/news/region/oakland-county/customer-shoots-at-two-suspected-shoplifters-as-they-leave-auburn-hills-home-depot

October 7, 2015

War Crime in Afghanistan?: Outrage After U.S. Airstrike on Hospital Kills 22 Patients & Staff

Published on Oct 5, 2015

Doctors Without Borders is demanding an independent international inquiry into a U.S. airstrike Saturday on an Afghan hospital in the city of Kunduz that killed 22 people, including 12 staff members and 10 patients, three of them children. At least three dozen people were injured. The attack continued for 30 minutes after the U.S. and Afghan militaries were informed by telephone that the hospital was being bombed. We speak with Kathy Kelly, co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence, who just returned from Kabul, Afghanistan; Gino Strada, co-founder of Emergency, an Italian NGO that provides free medical care to victims of war; and Dr. Hakim, a medical doctor who has provided humanitarian relief in Afghanistan for the last decade.
Democracynow.org - Democracy Now!, is an independent global news hour that airs weekdays on 1,300+ TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream 8-9am ET: http://democracynow.org

October 7, 2015

Digby: They think they’re all Clint Eastwood: Donald Trump, Ben Carson & the right’s demented gun ..

They think they’re all Clint Eastwood: Donald Trump, Ben Carson & the right’s demented gun fantasies
It's come to this: Leading GOP candidates are suggesting it's cowardly not to throw oneself into a hail of bullets

HEATHER DIGBY PARTON


On the stump last week-end, Donald Trump entertained his followers in the wake of the massacre in Oregon with colorful fantasies of him walking down the street, pulling a gun on a would-be assailant and taking him out right there on the sidewalk. He said, “I have a license to carry in New York, can you believe that? Somebody attacks me, they’re gonna be shocked,” at which point he mimes a quick draw:



As the crowd applauds and cheers, he goes on to say “somebody attacks me, oh they’re gonna be shocked. Can you imagine? Somebody says, oh there’s Trump, he’s easy pickins…” And then he pantomimes the quick draw again:



Everybody laughs. And then Trump talks about an old Charles Bronson vigilante movie and they all chanted the name “Death Wish” together. Keep in mind that this sophomoric nonsense took place just two days after a disturbed man went into a classroom and shot 17 people.

Now Trump is a clown, we know that — a very wealthy celebrity clown who has captured the imagination of millions of people. And if there’s one thing he’s known for, it’s his macho swagger so this isn’t exactly a shock coming from him. Indeed his entire rap is based on the idea that American leaders are all a bunch of “babies” (although one cannot help but think he has some other words in mind) while he is the manly leader who will take on all the “bad people” including world leaders, ISIS and anyone else who stands in the way of making America great again. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Trump literally packing head at his next rally and shooting into the air like Yosemite Sam. ..........................(more)

http://www.salon.com/2015/10/07/they_think_theyre_all_clint_eastwood_donald_trump_ben_carson_the_rights_demented_gun_fantasies/

October 7, 2015

Bobby Jindal: They like me! They really like me!

This is just sad.


Bobby Jindal Proudly Announces Meteoric Rise to Tie for Fifth Place in Iowa Poll
By Ben Mathis-Lilley


(Slate) One of the themes of the 2016 Republican presidential primary race has been the comical superfluousness of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, whose campaign appears to consist entirely of sending out badly punctuated, nonsensical press releases and tweets. Today we may have reached maximum Jindal:



Why is “on the move” in quotation marks? Who is being quoted?

FYI, the complete results of the poll in question actually say Jindal tied for fifth place with Marco Rubio and Mike Huckabee; also, the poll's margin of error was 4.7 percent. Per RealClearPolitics' running averages, Jindal's true level of support is actually around 4 percent in Iowa (seventh place) and an impressively low 0.5 percent nationally (eleven-zillionth place). Bobby Jindal is on the move (toward an inevitable announcement that he is dropping out of the 2016 presidential race)!

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/10/06/bobby_jindal_proudly_tweets_that_he_s_in_fifth_place_in_an_iowa_poll.html

October 7, 2015

Jeb's REAL reason for enlisting the help of his brother (cartoon)

http://www.truthdig.com/cartoon/item/jeb_and_dubya_20151007

October 7, 2015

The world is ending today. Again.

Have any plans for Wednesday, Oct. 7?

You better cancel them. That’s because the eBible Fellowship website, based in Sharon Hill, Pa., is predicting the world will be annihilated on Wednesday.

“According to what the Bible is presenting it does appear that 7 October will be the day that God has spoken of: in which, the world will pass away,” church founder Chris McCann told The Guardian.

“It’ll be gone forever. Annihilated,” he said.

McCann claims to have studied the Bible and extrapolated from a previous claim that the world was ending on May 21, 2011, that the correct date is actually Oct. 7. ...................(more)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cancel-your-plans-because-the-world-is-ending-today-christian-group-claims_561528eae4b0cf9984d7c072?utm_hp_ref=weird-news&ir=Weird%2BNews&section=weird-news

October 7, 2015

Child care costs more than college in these 24 states

(MarketWatch) While the astronomical (and rising) cost of college seems to garner all the media attention, it’s the cost of child care that should be more worrying for many parents.

Nearly 11 million children under the age of five require child care at least weekly and spend an average of 36 hours a week in child care — and for the parents footing the bill, this can make a serious dent in their finances.

In roughly half the states in this country, child care costs more than college, according to a report released this year by the Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank focused on conducting research around the economic status of working Americans. Indeed, in 24 states and Washington, D.C., the average cost to care for a four-year-old for one year exceeds the cost of tuition for a year at a public, in-state four-year college. And in 33 states and Washington, D.C., the average cost to care for an infant for a year exceeds the cost of tuition for a year at a public, in-state four-year college.

Annual child care costs for a four-year-old range from $4,128 in rural South Carolina to $17,664 in Washington, D.C. The average annual cost of tuition for an in-state full-time undergraduate student in a public college ranges from $3,756 in Wyoming to $14,469 in New Hampshire. ....................(more)

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/child-care-costs-more-than-college-in-these-24-states-2015-10-07?dist=lcountdown

October 7, 2015

Monsanto and Syngenta Tighten Stranglehold on Global Food Supply

Monsanto and Syngenta Tighten Stranglehold on Global Food Supply

Tuesday, 06 October 2015 00:00
By Paul Barbot, Truthout | Op-Ed


There is a corporate monster in the making. If allowed to emerge, it will gain near complete control of one of the most vital elements to human survival: our global food supply. This monster - a conglomeration of two corporate entities, Monsanto and Syngenta - must be stopped for the sake of the planet and future generations.

The companies that would make up this monster conglomeration both want complete control of our food. They envision a world completely inundated with their "patented" genetically modified seeds and saturated in their environmentally destructive chemicals. They seek to put all of their critics and those deemed "in the way" in prison or leave them financially ruined. They threaten to subvert the democratic process with their "bought" legislators, who are strategically placed inside virtually every facet of the governmental apparatus. And they do all of this while wrapped in the rhetoric of superheroes, sustainability and stewardship.

Fortunately, the behemoth merger is still in its gestational period: Its constituent entities, Monsanto and Syngenta, have yet to fully "consummate" the deal. But when the conglomeration does finally emerge, it will do so with a brand new identity.

And why wouldn't Monsanto and Syngenta want to shed those tired, old skins? Both of their "brands" are mired in criminality, environmental devastation and the exposures of their mafia-style tactics. ...............(more)

http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/33105-monsanto-and-syngenta-tighten-stranglehold-on-global-food-supply

October 7, 2015

Survey: two out of three of Americans likely to use High-Speed Rail in USA

Washington, D.C. — If you build high-speed rail in America, they will come. According to a 2015 survey released by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), if high-speed rail were available today, two-thirds (63 percent) of Americans are likely to use high-speed trains and this jumps to nearly seventy (67) percent when respondents were informed of the costs and time saving benefits of high-speed rail service.

“People want high-speed rail in America and we are seeing support among various ages and in different regions of the country regardless of political party,” said APTA President and CEO Michael Melaniphy. “In addition, the millennial generation and younger adults will lead the way with their preferences to have a multi-modal transportation system that supports their lifestyle. It is critical that we include implementation of high-speed rail as we look to plan for the nation’s future transportation needs.”

In the survey “High-Speed Rail in America 2015”, conducted by TechnoMetrica for APTA, the likelihood of respondents using high-speed rail for their work and leisure travel increases as they were informed that it will be less expensive than flying and that it will take less time than driving to their destination. When told of these cost and time saving benefits, Millennials and young people (18-44) strong likelihood of use at 71 percent jumps to 76 percent. Those respondents who identify as Republican represent the largest growth of intended use, their likelihood of using high-speed rail increases from 58 to 65 percent, followed by Independents, 61 to 67 percent, and Democrats’ already strong likelihood of use goes from 73 to 75 percent when informed of the savings of time and costs.

“A high-speed rail network will have a tremendous benefit to our entire transportation system,” said Melaniphy. “It will enable America’s air, rail, bus, ferry and highway systems to each function effectively and efficiently as we face a dramatic population growth that adds more travelers than our current capacity can accommodate.”

The survey also revealed that Americans overwhelmingly support efforts to streamline government regulations that will promote real-estate development near high-speed rail. This development could include amenities such as popular retail shops, walkable neighborhoods, and unique dining experiences. Overall, nearly three quarters of respondents (71 percent) support reducing regulations so that amenities can be built near high-speed rail stations. ..................(more)

http://allaboardohio.org/2015/10/05/survey-2-of-3-of-americans-likely-to-use-high-speed-rail-in-usa%E2%80%8B/

October 7, 2015

Top European Court Rules That NSA Spying Makes U.S. Unsafe For Data

(The Intercept) The European Union no longer considers the United States a “safe harbor” for data because the National Security Agency surveillance exposed by whistleblower Edward Snowden “enables interference, by United States public authorities, with the fundamental rights of persons.”

The EU’s highest court, the Court of Justice, declared on Tuesday that an international commercial data-sharing agreement allowing U.S. companies free-flowing access to large amounts of European citizens’ data was no longer valid.

As Snowden revealed in 2013, the NSA has been interpreting section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act as giving it license to intercept Internet and telephone communications in and out of the U.S. on a massive scale. That is known as “Upstream” collection. The NSA is not required to demonstrate probable cause of a crime before a court or judge before examining the data. Another 702 program, called PRISM, explicitly collects communications of “targeted individuals” from providers such as Facebook, Yahoo and Skype.

When Max Schrems, an Austrian law student, learned about Snowden’s revelations, he argued that Facebook was ignoring stronger European privacy laws when it sent his data from its European headquarters in Ireland back to the United States, where it was being intercepted by the NSA. Schrems wrote that the lawsuit he launched against Facebook was about “transparency” and “user control” because he could not determine what was being done with his data—which goes against the European Union Charter of Fundamental Rights. ......................(more)

https://theintercept.com/2015/10/06/top-european-court-rules-that-nsa-spying-makes-u-s-unsafe-for-data/