September 30, 2013

My dog was just run over and killed.

I just can't see myself getting past this.

September 30, 2013

Blinking art exhibit closed after patrons fall ill

Blinking art exhibit closed after patrons fall ill
Sept. 30, 2013, 9:14 AM EST

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Authorities have temporarily shut down a room-sized art installation with blinking lights in Pittsburgh after three visitors reported seizure-like symptoms.

An 18-year-old woman was treated at the scene Sunday afternoon after reporting seizure-like symptoms at the downtown work titled "Zee" by Austrian artist Kurt Hentschlager, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (http://bit.ly/18jk44i ) reported.

District EMS Chief Paul Sabol said she was the third person to report feeling ill since the exhibition opened Friday.

Before entering, patrons must sign a waiver that describes the exhibit as "intense stroboscopic light in combination with thick artificial fog, resulting in a loss of spatial orientation." People with photosensitive epilepsy, breathing or heart problems, migraines, claustrophobia or anxiety are warned not to go inside.

Sabol said the exhibit will be temporarily closed and changes could be made before it reopns. Henstchlager couldn't be reached for comment.

The installation has appeared in other venues in the city previously, and Pittsburgh Cultural Trust spokeswoman Shaunda Miles said some patrons reported seizures in those places as well.

___

Information from: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, http://pghtrib.com

His website is: http://www.bloodyloud.com/zee-kurt-hentschlager/

September 30, 2013

Quote of the Day

Quotations of the day

Published: September 30, 2013 Updated 7 hours ago

The Associated Press

"You're going to shut down the government if you can't prevent millions of Americans from getting affordable care," — Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., in comments after congressional Republicans vowed to keep using an otherwise routine federal funding bill to try to attack the president's health care law as the government teeters on the brink of partial shutdown.

---

Read more here: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/09/30/2751028/quotations-of-the-day.html#storylink=cpy

September 30, 2013

Futures fall sharply as US careens toward shutdown

Source: AP


Futures fall sharply as US careens toward shutdown

The Associated Press

NEW YORK — U.S. stock futures slumped Monday as the federal government careened toward a partial shutdown.

<snip>

The Dow Jones industrial futures fell 144 points to 15,051. S&P futures gave up 15.6 points to 1,670.80, and the index could see its first back-to-back trading days below 1,700 in three weeks. Nasdaq futures tumbled 30 points to 3,193.

<snip>

On Friday, the government releases its jobs report for September. The earnings seasons opens on Oct. 8 when Alcoa reports third-quarter results and on the following day, the U.S. Federal Reserve releases minutes from its most recent meeting.

<snip>

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares slid 0.9 percent to 6,457 while Germany's DAX fell 1.1 percent at 8,567. The CAC-40 in France fell 1.4 percent to 4,129.... Milan's stock exchange tumbled 1.9 percent to 17,310..... Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average closed 2.1 percent lower at 14,455.80. Hong's Hang Seng index fell 1.5 percent to 22,859.86 while South Korea's Kospi was 0.7 percent lower at 1,074.

Read more here: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/09/30/2751228/futures-fall-sharply-as-us-careens.html#storylink=cpy

Read more: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/09/30/2751228/futures-fall-sharply-as-us-careens.html

September 30, 2013

10 Things to Know for Today

10 Things to Know for Today


The Associated Press

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today:

1. AVOIDING THE BUDGET ABYSS

One lawmaker predicts that his fellow Republicans in the House will in the end avert a government shutdown by abandoning the effort to defund Obamacare.

2. CLINTON, GINGRICH BATTLE LED TO LONGEST SHUTDOWN

When the strong-willed pols faced off about two decades ago over Medicare and other issues, the government halted twice, and one shutdown lasted 21 days.

3. HOW SYRIA INSPECTORS AIM TO GET THE JOB DONE

To make sure the regime scraps its chemical weapons, the teams say they may need to blow up missiles, smash empty shells and demolish machinery.

4. ISRAEL: BEWARE NEW IRAN LEADER'S 'SMILEY CAMPAIGN'

"I will tell the truth in the face of the sweet talk" about Iran's nuclear activities, Netanyahu says in advance of his meeting with Obama.

<snip>

8. RUNAWAY SPENDING IN NYC JAILS

Experts are trying to figure out how the city spent $167,731 per inmate last year — nearly as much as it costs for four years of tuition at an Ivy League university.

<snip>

Read more here: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/09/30/2751179/10-things-to-know-for-today.html#storylink=cpy

September 30, 2013

On the bright side of it

Oil down sharply on looming US government shutdown

Published: September 29, 2013 Updated 26 minutes ago

By PABLO GORONDI — Associated Press

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — The price of oil fell sharply on Monday, to below $102 a barrel, amid concerns that U.S. political leaders might not be able to reach a deal on a federal budget needed to avoid a partial shutdown of the government.

By early afternoon in Europe, the benchmark oil contract for November delivery was down $1.36 to $101.51 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 16 cents to close at $102.87 a barrel on Friday.

The U.S. government will reach its borrowing limit, or debt ceiling, on Tuesday. If Congress doesn't raise that limit, the government won't be able to pay all its bills and some 800,000 of the 2.1 million federal employees will not go to work.

A lasting solution seems far off as the White House and Republican lawmakers still disagree sharply on spending cuts and other key budget issues.

"The economy will slow down, confidence will slide and demand for crude will be hurt," said Evan Lucas, analyst with IG in Melbourne. "There will be a real snowball effect if the partial shutdown goes ahead."

Goldman Sachs estimated that a three-week shutdown would slow the economy's annual growth rate in the October-December quarter by up to 0.9 percentage points. If so, the growth rate next quarter would be a scant 1.6 percent, compared with market expectations of a 2.5 percent growth.

<snip>

After climbing to over $110 in late August, the price of oil has been mostly falling for three straight weeks as diplomatic efforts surrounding Syria and Iran eased concerns about Middle East supplies.

"Political crises in Italy and the U.S. mean risk is off the menu, while receding geopolitical concerns in the Middle East and excess supply are also weighing on the price of oil," said Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst at GFT Markets in London.

<snip>

Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, contributed to this report.

Read more here: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/09/29/2750920/oil-lower-amid-jitters-over-us.html#storylink=cpy

September 28, 2013

Unintented consequences of Bush wars

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/soldiers-charged-ny-dea-agent-death-plot-20395574?singlePage=true

3 Ex-Soldiers Accused of Plot to Kill DEA Agent
NEW YORK September 27, 2013 (AP)
By LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press

Associated Press

Two former American soldiers — one nicknamed "Rambo" — and a German ex-soldier faced charges Friday that they plotted to kill a U.S. drug enforcement agent and an informant for $800,000 in an assassination plan created by drug agents who wanted to catch trained snipers gone bad, authorities said.

The charges were announced by prosecutors in Manhattan, where an indictment unsealed in federal court portrayed a trio of ex-soldiers eager to kill for money.

"That's fun, actually; for me, that's fun. I love this work," the ex-German soldier was quoted in court papers as saying. The documents described numerous conversations at meetings in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean from January through September that were recorded by Drug Enforcement Administration agents building a case through confidential sources posing as Colombian drug traffickers.

<snip>

When assassinations of a federal agent and an informant were proposed, Hunter "didn't flinch at the chance," Bharara said. He boasted that his men could handle both jobs, the prosecutor said, adding that "from there, it was off to the races."

<snip>

According to the indictment, Hunter served in the U.S. Army from 1983 to 2004 before becoming a contract killer who successfully arranged several slayings. At one meeting, Hunter was captured on tape describing how he had arranged the killings of real estate agents. Authorities said those killings had occurred outside the United States, though they did not provide specifics.

<snip>

The indictment said Vamvakias served in the U.S. Army from 1991 to 1993 and from 1999 to 2004. He was a sergeant, serving stints in South Korea and later as a military police officer in Puerto Rico.

Gogel was in the German armed forces from 2007 to 2010, attaining the rank of corporal and receiving commendations for his sniper skills, the court papers said. He was deployed for a time in Kosovo.

Two others were arrested on drug charges. Slawomir Soborski, 40, a citizen of Poland, was a member of an elite counterterrorism unit while serving in the Polish military in two stints between 1998 and 2011. He later worked as a security contractor in Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti and elsewhere, court papers said. Michael Filter, 29, served in the German armed forces from 2006 to 2009. Both were in custody in Estonia, awaiting extradition proceedings.

To prepare for the assassination plot, Vamvakias and Gogel offered ideas and plans, including the need for machine guns, cyanide, a grenade, masks and appropriate weapons, the indictment said.

The court papers said Gogel provided the DEA source with two sophisticated latex facemasks that could make the wearer appear to be of another race. The masks were among items Gogel and Vamvakias brought along when they arrived in Liberia on Wednesday planning to carry out the murder-for-hire plot, the indictment said.



and these are the easy to catch goofballs. What about the truly able ones out there wandering around, on a mission?

September 27, 2013

Gays can eat someone else’s pasta

Head of Barilla pasta company: Gays can eat someone else’s pasta

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/26/head-of-barilla-pasta-company-gays-can-eat-someone-elses-pasta/



Guido Barilla, president of the family-owned Barilla pasta company, said in a radio interview on Wednesday that his company only supports “the traditional family” and that LGBT people “can go eat someone else’s pasta.” According to John Aravosis at Americablog, Barilla has since backtracked on his remarks somewhat, but many LGBT people around the world are reacting angrily to the slam by the head of the massive, global brand.

“We won’t include gays in our ads, because we like the traditional family,” Barilla told an interviewer. “If gays don’t like it, they can always eat another brand of pasta. Everyone is free to do what they want, provided it doesn’t bother anyone else.”

Barilla said today that he meant no ill will toward LGBT people with his remarks, saying in a statement, “With reference to statements made yesterday, I apologize if my words have generated controversy or misunderstanding, or if they have hurt the sensibilities of some people. In the interview I simply wanted to highlight the central role of the woman in the family.”

He also said that he has “the utmost respect for any person, without distinction of any kind,” and “the greatest respect for gays and for the freedom of expression of anyone.”

Reuters reported that rights groups are calling for a boycott of Barilla’s pastas, sauces and other foods.

Aurelio Mancuso of Equality Italia called Barilla’s remarks an “offensive provocation” and added that “(w)e accept the invitation from the Barilla owner to not eat his pasta.”

Gay Italian minister of parliament Alessandro Zan tweeted, “You can’t mess around with consumers, including gay ones.”

September 27, 2013

Russians censor website about Russians censoring websites

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/26/russians-censor-website-about-russians-censoring-websites/

There are a few things that seem fairly clear about the Russian government. First, it loves to censor stuff, preferring whitelists to blacklists. Secondly, the Russian government isn't so big on this whole free speech thing, and it's even less enthused about anonymous speech. Also, we know that the Russian government likes to limit what it calls "obscenities," which not only feature your common curse words and YouTube style internet comments, but also anyone who is gay and likes being gay enough to tell someone else that being gay ain't so bad. And, finally, I now know the Russian government sucks at irony.

I say that because a language art website in Russia that published a bunch of satirical material on how gay people give the Kremlin the censorious heebie-jeebies has been itself censored.

In August, Russian-language art website published two satirical ebooks spoofing Russia's new anti-gay propaganda" laws, Homosexuality for Kids and Lesbianism for Kids. Now, they along with their entire blogging platform, is apparently banned in Russia. The two gay "guidebooks" are full of explicit images and tongue-in-cheek pronouncements like "Sometimes, when you look at another boy, you suddenly feel happy and strange." But as Animal New York points out, "one look through them and you know they're not gay textbooks for children. If you don't, you are silly or tyrannical Kremlin minion."

<snip>

Luckily for Looo.ch, being banned by one of America's geopolitical adversaries is a great way to get blogs to write about you here in the U.S.. So what is looo.ch? It's the online home of New York-based Ukranian artists Anatoli Ulyanov and Natasha Masharova. The site is a raw, intriguing collection of projects, many of which seem to be direct provocations of Russia's overzealous web censors, recently empowered by the blacklist law that allows sites to be blocked if they are deemed to contain "information dangerous for children."

<snip>

September 24, 2013

Deaf Boy Tasered for being Deaf

Deaf Boy Tasered for being Deaf

by LollardfishFollow

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/09/18/1239682/-Deaf-Boy-Tasered-for-being-Deaf?detail=email


For the past year, I have been writing about a persistent pattern of police violence against people with disabilities. I wrote about it in The Nation and have been particularly focused on the Ethan Saylor case.

But the stories proliferate, with a new one almost every week. I've argued that you can read both the Times Square police shooting and the Ferrell case through the lens of police not knowing/caring how to respond to people acting "differently." The racial reading is of course front and center for that second case, of course, but seen through the lens of trying to explain how Ferrell is acting, temporarily disability following an accident makes sense.

Alas, the stories proliferate, many of them following the general pattern that I call the cult of compliance, a pattern of behavior in which police respond to non-compliance with violence. I argue that the pattern extends beyond disability, but that cases of disability are particularly acute.

Digby, who is one of the leaders on this topic, brought this story to my attention as the latest example of the horrific consequences of the cult of compliance.

A deaf boy was escaping abuse and ran away from a school. The police found him, approached, then tasered him when he didn't respond. Here's the key paragraph -



Police arrived at the construction site after dark. Knowing the boy was deaf, they allegedly made no effort to warn or communicate with him, but Tasered him from behind. As A.M. writhed on the ground from the “burns, paralysis and pain” caused by the Taser barbs, the two police officers rushed him and placed him in handcuffs.

There's a lawsuit, some money will change hands, and in no way will the cult of compliance be threatened.

It's worth thinking through this scene from the perspective of the police officer. It's dark. He knows the boy is deaf so can't be verbally controlled. At that point he just decides to solve the problem with a quick jolt of 40,000 volts. Does he talk about it with his partner first? I suppose they are worried he'll run away again (a reasonable guess given the awful situation).

We need to assert our right NOT to be tasered just because the police want us to comply. It's crazy that we have to even argue for this. But we do. To protect the deaf. Other people with disabilities. And every one of us.