Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Gableman changes his mind about that Rindfleisch appeal #JohnDoe #JohnDoeII #JohnDoe2
“A Wisconsin Supreme Court justice on Tuesday withdrew his unusual request asking for his colleagues on the state’s highest court to review its decision not to hear an appeal of a felony conviction from a former aide to Gov. Scott Walker.” – source Interesting. I feel loathe to speculate about this turn of events because more »
Monday, June 29, 2015
DC’s Silver Line: A Transit Expansion 34 Years in the Making
Image via Greater Greater Washington. Click to enlarge
When a politician like Maryland Governor Larry Hogan kills off a transit project, not only does he rob citizens of anticipated improvements, he could be wiping out decades of intricate planning.
Dan Malouff at Greater Greater Washington notes that by 2019 it will have taken 34 years to complete the Metro’s Silver Line, which will connect DC and suburban counties with Dulles Airport.
Malouff explains the above graphic:
The timeline begins in 1985, when the idea of a Metro line to Dulles Airport went from vague concept to serious planning initiative following a study that determined it would be feasible.
Planning (yellow on the timeline) and environmental work (green) took the next 21 years, until 2006. It took another 3 years for officials to finalize funding (blue) before construction (purple) could begin in 2009.
Plopping a rail line down the middle of a gargantuan suburban highway with a capacious median is easy compared to putting one virtually anywhere else. Almost any other potential Metrorail expansion imaginable will be harder to plan, fund, and build.
“That doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing,” Malouff writes. “But it’s definitely going to be hard.”
Elsewhere on the Network today: Streets.mn tests whether motorists are yielding to pedestrians; and Biking Toronto reports that there is fresh green paint, but no physical separation, on a much-needed bike lane.
Chris Squire, Bassist And Co-Founder Of Progressive Rock Band Yes, Dead At 67
NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Squire, the bassist and co-founder of the progressive rock band Yes who recently announced he had leukemia, has died, according to a statement from his band members on Sunday. He was 67.
The band posted a statement on its Facebook page saying Squire "peacefully passed away" Saturday in Phoenix, where he lived. No further details about the death were provided. Squire announced last month that he had acute erythroid leukemia, a rare form of acute myeloid leukemia. He was receiving treatment before he died.
"It's with the heaviest of hearts and unbearable sadness that we must inform you of the passing of our dear friend and Yes co-founder, Chris Squire," said the statement from Alan White, Steve Howe, Jon Davison and Geoff Downes.
"For the entirety of Yes' existence, Chris was the band's linchpin and, in so many ways, the glue that held it together over all these years," the band's statement continued. "Because of his phenomenal bass-playing prowess, Chris influenced countless bassists around the world, including many of today's well-known artists."
Squire was born on March 4, 1948, in London. He was the only member to play on all of Yes' albums, and he co-founded the band with its former lead singer, Jon Anderson. The group released its self-titled debut album in 1969.
In a statement posted Sunday on his website, Anderson said he and Squire were "musical brothers."
"I feel blessed to have created some wonderful, adventurous, music with him. Chris had such a great sense of humor ... he always said he was Darth Vader to my Obiwan. I always thought of him as Christopher Robin to my Winnie the Pooh," he wrote.
Anderson added that he was thankful he recently connected with Squire: "I saw him in my meditation last night, and he was radiant."
Squire, a talented and dominant bass guitarist, was one of the leaders of progressive rock in the 1970s. His website says he was a choirboy in his youth, which set the foundation for his musical talents.
He released his solo debut, "Fish Out of Water," in 1975, and also played in the short-lived supergroup XYZ (eX-Yes-Zeppelin), which included Jimmy Page.
Yes released the album "Heaven & Earth" last year. The Grammy-winning band's hits include "Roundabout" and "Owner of a Lonely Heart," which became a No. 1 hit on the Billboard pop charts in the 1980s. The group will launch a U.S. tour with Toto in August, when Billy Sherwood will fill in for Squire.
Squire is survived by his wife, Scotland, and several children.
___
Online:
http://www.yesworld.com/
The band posted a statement on its Facebook page saying Squire "peacefully passed away" Saturday in Phoenix, where he lived. No further details about the death were provided. Squire announced last month that he had acute erythroid leukemia, a rare form of acute myeloid leukemia. He was receiving treatment before he died.
"It's with the heaviest of hearts and unbearable sadness that we must inform you of the passing of our dear friend and Yes co-founder, Chris Squire," said the statement from Alan White, Steve Howe, Jon Davison and Geoff Downes.
"For the entirety of Yes' existence, Chris was the band's linchpin and, in so many ways, the glue that held it together over all these years," the band's statement continued. "Because of his phenomenal bass-playing prowess, Chris influenced countless bassists around the world, including many of today's well-known artists."
Squire was born on March 4, 1948, in London. He was the only member to play on all of Yes' albums, and he co-founded the band with its former lead singer, Jon Anderson. The group released its self-titled debut album in 1969.
In a statement posted Sunday on his website, Anderson said he and Squire were "musical brothers."
"I feel blessed to have created some wonderful, adventurous, music with him. Chris had such a great sense of humor ... he always said he was Darth Vader to my Obiwan. I always thought of him as Christopher Robin to my Winnie the Pooh," he wrote.
Anderson added that he was thankful he recently connected with Squire: "I saw him in my meditation last night, and he was radiant."
Squire, a talented and dominant bass guitarist, was one of the leaders of progressive rock in the 1970s. His website says he was a choirboy in his youth, which set the foundation for his musical talents.
He released his solo debut, "Fish Out of Water," in 1975, and also played in the short-lived supergroup XYZ (eX-Yes-Zeppelin), which included Jimmy Page.
Yes released the album "Heaven & Earth" last year. The Grammy-winning band's hits include "Roundabout" and "Owner of a Lonely Heart," which became a No. 1 hit on the Billboard pop charts in the 1980s. The group will launch a U.S. tour with Toto in August, when Billy Sherwood will fill in for Squire.
Squire is survived by his wife, Scotland, and several children.
___
Online:
http://www.yesworld.com/
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Explosion at Taiwan water park injures nearly 500
People carry an injured victim from an accidental explosion during a music concert at the Formosa Water Park in New Taipei City, Taiwan, June 27, 2015. Photo by Wu Chia/Reuters
Special effects color powder at a water park near Taipei, Taiwan, suddenly ignited into a fireball and blasted into a crowd on Saturday. 498 people attending the “Color Play Asia” party at Formosa Water Park were reportedly injured.
Some victims sustained skin burns covering up to 80 percent of their bodies, Reuters reported.
Taipei health official Lee Lih-jong told Agence France-Presse that many suffered damage to their respiratory organs by inhaling the flammable colored powder.
Nearly 200 people remain in intensive care, but so far there have been no fatalities.
Taiwan’s president Ma Ying-jeou (L) meets with family members of the victims injured in a fire at the Formosa Fun Coast water park at Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan, June 28, 2015. Almost 200 people remain in intensive care, with some injured victims sustaining burns covering up to 80 percent of their body. Photo by Pichi Chuang/Reuters
Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou visited injured victims and their families at Taipei Veterans General Hospital on Sunday.
Deputy fire chief Chen Chung-yueh told AFP he suspects the powder may have been ignited by sparks from nearby machinery.
The organizer of the party and the hardware engineer responsible for lighting are both being held for questioning, CNN reported.
Eric Chu, the mayor of New Taipei, told reporters he has ordered the park to be closed until further notice.
The post Explosion at Taiwan water park injures nearly 500 appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Black churches in the South reportedly targeted by arsonists
Six predominantly black churches in various cities in the South caught fire this week, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Three of the fires have been confirmed as cases of arson, two were likely accidental, and authorities are still investigating the cause of another.
The College Hills Seventh Day Adventist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee erupted into flames early Monday morning. The Knoxville Fire Department said an arsonist deliberately set fires in multiple locations around the church, according to local news station WATE.
Arson under investigation at African-American church in Knoxville – @ROOK_WATE's story @ 11 http://t.co/NRlbbVrwf8 pic.twitter.com/qcxbZFxJtN
— WATE 6 On Your Side (@6News) June 22, 2015
The next day, a church in Macon, Georgia that has been the target of burglaries in the past was set on fire as well.
God’s Power Church of Christ caught fire on Tuesday morning. TheMacon-Bibb County Fire Department told media that their investigation has confirmed the fire was set deliberately.
Chief Riggins: cause of church fire is suspicious. Live at 6 with more @13wmaznews pic.twitter.com/L1XZTsq4DY
— Claire Davis (@rclairedavis) June 23, 2015
Macon church fire ruled arson (via @justmcduffie): http://t.co/QzJ8RtSeu0 pic.twitter.com/WhZg9zwH6a
— 13WMAZ News (@13wmaznews) June 26, 2015
Early Wednesday, the Briar Creek Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina was found engulfed in flames, resulting in an estimated $250,000 in damage, according to the Associated Press. Firefighters determined the blaze was also purposefully set.
Church pastor: "No lives were lost. When I think about that, I'm extremely grateful." http://t.co/COuuHqUnrP pic.twitter.com/HpKe2dYtA0
— Ronnie Glassberg (@ronnieglassberg) June 26, 2015
The Glover Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Warrenville, South Carolina was destroyed by fire early Friday morning. State authorities and the FBI are both looking for a cause, the AP reported.
The historically black church in Warrenville was a two and a half hour drive from charleston’s African Methodist Episcopal Church, where nine were killed on June 17.
#Fire under investigation at predominantly black church in #Warrenville: http://t.co/1p2BGDU19n @AikenSheriff pic.twitter.com/1DnelIy5Fu
— Aiken Standard (@aikenstandard) June 27, 2015
Here are photos from the Glover Grove Baptist Church fire: http://t.co/iNWwGwKvfd pic.twitter.com/eO6ZMOo0NN
— Aiken Standard (@aikenstandard) June 26, 2015
The Fruitland Presbyterian Church in Gibson County, Tennessee burned down Wednesday, potentially due to lightning, though the cause is still under investigation, and the Greater Miracle Temple Apostolic Holiness Church in Tallahassee, Florida burned on Friday because of a downed electrical wire, local news stations reported.
Arson attacks on black churches became more frequent in the mid-to-late 1900s. Congress passed a law in 1996 that heightened the punishment for arson of a religious organization. The Atlantic chronicled this period of violence in an article written following the June 17 attack in Charleston.
A manifesto that was allegedly penned by Dylan Roof, the shooter in the attack at Charleston’s African Methodist Episcopal Church, said that Roof specifically chose the city because of its rich black history.
Mother Emanuel itself was burned to the ground by white supremacists in 1822.
The post Black churches in the South reportedly targeted by arsonists appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Everything Is Papier-Mâché On 'True Detective' Episode 2
The season premiere of "True Detective" proved divisive last week, but entertainment editors Erin Whitney and Matthew Jacobs are sticking to their promise to discuss the show every Sunday. This week's episode dove slightly deeper into the mystery of Ben Caspare's death. The city manager's grizzly autopsy report prompted Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ani (Rachel McAdams) to question whether a penchant for prostitutes led to his demise. Meanwhile, we got an unsettling look at Paul's (Taylor Kitsch) family life, more of the series' noirish driving scenes, Frank (Vince Vaughn) worrying about his riches and a cliffhanger that could (rightfully) take the show in a whole other direction. Let's discuss.
Spoiler alert for "True Detective" Season 2, Episode 2, "Night Finds You."
Matthew Jacobs: Hi, Erin! We were pretty cruel toward last week's premiere, and the comments on our review seem to indicate a good number of people agreed with us. Then again, we were graced with a slew of ad hominem attacks on Twitter and via email, so clearly some of you took the episode as seriously as it took itself. Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to please the latter crop, so prep your aggression now, gracious readers.
I will say that Episode 2 was marginally better than the first. But hold on while I nod off as Frank moans about his self-made wealth ("Everything is papier-mâché" is an actual line uttered -- twice) and while Ray, Ani and Paul exchange vacant side glares as they examine Ben Caspere's body. On the other side lies the season's first intriguing scene: Paul's mother stroking his back and using what I assume is some sort of creepy euphemism when she tells him twice that he can have his "old room" if he spends the night. What is happening there? Give me more of that -- it actually feels like there is a character with layers on the screen and not hollow bodies who shepherd the vague plot from one phase to the next.
Erin Whitney: Before I jump into this and thus throw myself into the gladiator pit against "True Detective" defenders, let me at least say that I'm not simply comparing this week's new episode to Season 1. I will reference the initial season, though, because it's difficult not to mourn something great in the midst of watching the melodramatic scenes from this week's episode.
That opening sequence where Frank recalls his childhood with his drunk father is painful to watch, but in the wrong way. What should play as a poignant emotional moment is instead drenched in cheap desperation. Way longer than necessary, the scene feels like it's ripped straight out of an actor's guidebook to auditioning: the hardened criminal shows his vulnerability by recounting memories of his abusive daddy locking him in the basement. Pizzolatto has somehow lost all sense of subtlety in his writing to the point that I can't help but wonder if he's playing a joke on us.
Jump ahead to the car scenes between Ray and Ani and the group meeting between all three detectives. Each of these plays like a parody of Season 1 and, in general, much of quality television. Their conversations seem superfluous, or at least insignificant to the plot at hand. They don't reveal any distinct or deeper qualities about the characters. Part of me thinks Pizzolatto has completely flipped his writing style to subvert our expectations of what TV should be, which is what Matt Johnston claimed in his Business Insider review. Even so, that's not remotely engaging or serving any storytelling or symbolic purpose (at least not yet). I pray my mind will be changed by the end of the season -- I desperately want to be in awe of this show. But so far, I'm simply not convinced.
Matt: I can't say I buy that there is that much self-awareness at play, but I've seen others make arguments about its meta relationship to prestige programming, too. The show doesn't seem to realize what it's lacking, which is a sense of identity within the world it depicts. Every location featured is a grubby, nondescript part of this fictional LA-adjacent town, and without color from local denizens drifting through the background, it is rendered culture-less. That's why I griped about the freeway shots last week -- they reflect the web of plots the show has weaved, but do little to immerse us in what makes this town tick and why Caspere's disappearance is worth eight talky hours of television. The same goes for the car scenes, where Ray and Ani carry on meaningless conversations that don't unearth much about their worldviews or the communities they defend. And that green screen? HBO, please tell me the screeners you provided to press still needed color-correction work, because damn. If we thought the aerial shots do nothing for the season's world-building, just look at the streets these characters drive down.
I thought the scene with Paul's mother accomplished what most of the others did not in hinting at a mysterious backstory that we actually want to take the time to understand. I criticized his suicidal bender last week, but could Paul actually be the season's best character? Not that he has much competition: I still don't understand much about Ani and it seems like the show thinks we know more about Frank than we actually do, while Ray is so on the nose that I understand far too much about him. But wait! Maybe he's dead? Those final few moments were pretty gripping, and it could point to interesting things to come. But I find it hard to believe he's actually a goner.
Erin: I enjoyed the scene between Paul and his mother as well and finally began to feel a sense of discomfort, which is something this season has lacked so far. But I also really loved the final scene with Ray in Caspere's secret home. The animal masks and vintage radio amped up the (possible) presence of the occult, and things were just starting to get interesting. Like you said, I can't imagine the season killing off its lead character just yet. Still, it feels a bit cheap to tease audiences with such a big cliffhanger so early on.
The lack of identity you mention is my main criticism of the first two episodes overall. This season has no sense of place, which is surprising for a plot so grounded in a distinct locale. The corruption and grimy immorality of last season hung over every episode, reminding viewers of the horrors of world Rust and Marty were immersed in. It's fine that Season 2 isn't trying to recreate that feeling, but it makes the atmosphere that much less intriguing. Why care about a kidnapped official from a city no one cares for in the first place? Even after two episodes, I still don't feel like we've witnessed enough of the idiosyncrasies of the fictional Vinci -- I'm longing to see more of it, but the low-quality crushing car scenes and brief shots of factories do little to characterize it. Whatever happens moving forward, I hope that final scene pays off in a major way.
Matt: It gave me the sense that Ray knew more than the audience did. There was a certain comfort on his face as he lurked through Caspere's home, implying his power-abusing corruption might extend to the expired city manager. That would give his need to retain custody over his possibly illegitimate son -- the part of his life that he sees as a saving grace -- a sense of purpose that stretches beyond clichéd daddy issues. Conversely, maybe he's working to crush Frank's entire operation after spending so much time indebted to him. That's a script-flipping I'd sign on for. Either would ground the mystery by contouring the good-or-evil debate the show hasn't convinced us to invest in regarding these characters. Maybe this is Season 2's turning point. Here's to hoping for a more immersive discussion next week.
Erin: The possibility of Ray withholding information and/or conning Frank all along is the most exciting theory yet, and one that could quickly turn me into a fan of this season. I've wondered whether scrutinizing this show episode by episode may hurt our perception of it. Last season I fell so deeply down the rabbit hole of uncovering the Yellow King's identity that I nearly lost sight of the overall story at hand. While I'm still skeptical, I am going to try to pull back a bit and let the next few episodes wash over me, and hopefully they will surprise us both.
"True Detective" airs on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO.
Spoiler alert for "True Detective" Season 2, Episode 2, "Night Finds You."
Matthew Jacobs: Hi, Erin! We were pretty cruel toward last week's premiere, and the comments on our review seem to indicate a good number of people agreed with us. Then again, we were graced with a slew of ad hominem attacks on Twitter and via email, so clearly some of you took the episode as seriously as it took itself. Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to please the latter crop, so prep your aggression now, gracious readers.
I will say that Episode 2 was marginally better than the first. But hold on while I nod off as Frank moans about his self-made wealth ("Everything is papier-mâché" is an actual line uttered -- twice) and while Ray, Ani and Paul exchange vacant side glares as they examine Ben Caspere's body. On the other side lies the season's first intriguing scene: Paul's mother stroking his back and using what I assume is some sort of creepy euphemism when she tells him twice that he can have his "old room" if he spends the night. What is happening there? Give me more of that -- it actually feels like there is a character with layers on the screen and not hollow bodies who shepherd the vague plot from one phase to the next.
Erin Whitney: Before I jump into this and thus throw myself into the gladiator pit against "True Detective" defenders, let me at least say that I'm not simply comparing this week's new episode to Season 1. I will reference the initial season, though, because it's difficult not to mourn something great in the midst of watching the melodramatic scenes from this week's episode.
That opening sequence where Frank recalls his childhood with his drunk father is painful to watch, but in the wrong way. What should play as a poignant emotional moment is instead drenched in cheap desperation. Way longer than necessary, the scene feels like it's ripped straight out of an actor's guidebook to auditioning: the hardened criminal shows his vulnerability by recounting memories of his abusive daddy locking him in the basement. Pizzolatto has somehow lost all sense of subtlety in his writing to the point that I can't help but wonder if he's playing a joke on us.
Jump ahead to the car scenes between Ray and Ani and the group meeting between all three detectives. Each of these plays like a parody of Season 1 and, in general, much of quality television. Their conversations seem superfluous, or at least insignificant to the plot at hand. They don't reveal any distinct or deeper qualities about the characters. Part of me thinks Pizzolatto has completely flipped his writing style to subvert our expectations of what TV should be, which is what Matt Johnston claimed in his Business Insider review. Even so, that's not remotely engaging or serving any storytelling or symbolic purpose (at least not yet). I pray my mind will be changed by the end of the season -- I desperately want to be in awe of this show. But so far, I'm simply not convinced.
Matt: I can't say I buy that there is that much self-awareness at play, but I've seen others make arguments about its meta relationship to prestige programming, too. The show doesn't seem to realize what it's lacking, which is a sense of identity within the world it depicts. Every location featured is a grubby, nondescript part of this fictional LA-adjacent town, and without color from local denizens drifting through the background, it is rendered culture-less. That's why I griped about the freeway shots last week -- they reflect the web of plots the show has weaved, but do little to immerse us in what makes this town tick and why Caspere's disappearance is worth eight talky hours of television. The same goes for the car scenes, where Ray and Ani carry on meaningless conversations that don't unearth much about their worldviews or the communities they defend. And that green screen? HBO, please tell me the screeners you provided to press still needed color-correction work, because damn. If we thought the aerial shots do nothing for the season's world-building, just look at the streets these characters drive down.
I thought the scene with Paul's mother accomplished what most of the others did not in hinting at a mysterious backstory that we actually want to take the time to understand. I criticized his suicidal bender last week, but could Paul actually be the season's best character? Not that he has much competition: I still don't understand much about Ani and it seems like the show thinks we know more about Frank than we actually do, while Ray is so on the nose that I understand far too much about him. But wait! Maybe he's dead? Those final few moments were pretty gripping, and it could point to interesting things to come. But I find it hard to believe he's actually a goner.
Erin: I enjoyed the scene between Paul and his mother as well and finally began to feel a sense of discomfort, which is something this season has lacked so far. But I also really loved the final scene with Ray in Caspere's secret home. The animal masks and vintage radio amped up the (possible) presence of the occult, and things were just starting to get interesting. Like you said, I can't imagine the season killing off its lead character just yet. Still, it feels a bit cheap to tease audiences with such a big cliffhanger so early on.
The lack of identity you mention is my main criticism of the first two episodes overall. This season has no sense of place, which is surprising for a plot so grounded in a distinct locale. The corruption and grimy immorality of last season hung over every episode, reminding viewers of the horrors of world Rust and Marty were immersed in. It's fine that Season 2 isn't trying to recreate that feeling, but it makes the atmosphere that much less intriguing. Why care about a kidnapped official from a city no one cares for in the first place? Even after two episodes, I still don't feel like we've witnessed enough of the idiosyncrasies of the fictional Vinci -- I'm longing to see more of it, but the low-quality crushing car scenes and brief shots of factories do little to characterize it. Whatever happens moving forward, I hope that final scene pays off in a major way.
Matt: It gave me the sense that Ray knew more than the audience did. There was a certain comfort on his face as he lurked through Caspere's home, implying his power-abusing corruption might extend to the expired city manager. That would give his need to retain custody over his possibly illegitimate son -- the part of his life that he sees as a saving grace -- a sense of purpose that stretches beyond clichéd daddy issues. Conversely, maybe he's working to crush Frank's entire operation after spending so much time indebted to him. That's a script-flipping I'd sign on for. Either would ground the mystery by contouring the good-or-evil debate the show hasn't convinced us to invest in regarding these characters. Maybe this is Season 2's turning point. Here's to hoping for a more immersive discussion next week.
Erin: The possibility of Ray withholding information and/or conning Frank all along is the most exciting theory yet, and one that could quickly turn me into a fan of this season. I've wondered whether scrutinizing this show episode by episode may hurt our perception of it. Last season I fell so deeply down the rabbit hole of uncovering the Yellow King's identity that I nearly lost sight of the overall story at hand. While I'm still skeptical, I am going to try to pull back a bit and let the next few episodes wash over me, and hopefully they will surprise us both.
"True Detective" airs on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Water rescue captured on video after boat goes over dam in MD
One person died and eight others were rescued in Frederick County, Maryland yesterday (Saturday) after a pontoon boat went over the dam at Lake Linganore. Fire and rescue crews from Frederick County led the rescue operations. According to the Frederick News-Post three of those saved were lifted off the rocks by a Maryland State Police helicopter.
One person died and eight were rescued from the water after swift currents swept their boat over the dam into the spillway at Lake Linganore Saturday evening.
Officials say the nine people were surprised by the fast-moving water and lost control of their boat. They were thrown from the boat about 6:30 p.m.
Candy Thomson, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Natural Resources Police, tells The Frederick News-Post that the 62-year-old man operating the boat died following the Saturday evening incident.
Rescue workers recovered the man’s body Saturday night, about five hours after the accident. An autopsy is pending.
The eight people who were rescued were taken to Frederick Memorial Hospital. Information about their condition was not immediately available.
Authorities say three of the eight rescued were stranded on the spillway, clinging to rocks as a Maryland State Police helicopter hoisted them up to the aircraft one by one. The nine people on the boat ranged from teenagers to adults.
Early video: Pit bull mom & 7 puppies saved at body shop fire
Early video from LOUDLABS NEWS taken during a fire yesterday (Saturday) morning that started in the yard of an auto body shop in Compton, California. Firefighters were able to save seven 13-day old pit bull puppies and their mother but another dog died due to the fire. News coverage is here.
Governor Says Puerto Rico's Debts 'Not Payable': NYT
June 28 (Reuters) - Puerto Rico is set to release a key financial stability report by former IMF economists on Monday, officials said on Sunday, in a crucial week for the island as bond deadlines come due and investor concerns increase about the possibility for debt restructurings and a limitation on government services.
The New York Times on Sunday said the report would propose a bond exchange with new bonds offered with a longer or lower debt service. The newspaper cited Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla saying in an interview that the island's debts were not payable and that creditors would probably have to take significant concessions such as five year payment deferrals.
Puerto Rico is struggling with a $73 billion debt load and faltering economy while its Government Development Bank is running low on cash. The island is facing crunch time this week with several bond payments such as a July 1 deadline to make a $655 million payment on its general obligation debt while its struggling utility PREPA is in talks to avoid a possible default.
"We have to recognize we have a very serious problem with the fiscal situation of the island," House speaker Jaime Perello told press on Sunday.
Puerto Rico in February engaged a group of former International Monetary Fund economists to analyze its economic and financial stability and growth prospects. A separate report was also commissioned by consulting firm Conway MacKenzie.
Perello said that after the report is presented on Monday, work groups should be established. House minority leader Jenniffer Gonzalez said the governor would meet with mayors and lawmakers to discuss the report.
"(Next week is) the tipping point," said Adam Weigold, senior portfolio manager at Eaton Vance, on Friday.
Puerto Rico's debt problems could lead to a reduction in government services, investors said. However, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday the island is not contemplating a partial or full shutdown of government services.
Daniel Hanson, analyst at Height Securities, said the reports would allow the island to give an "opening bid" to creditors regarding a possible restructuring of the debt.
"Next week is probably a good buying opportunity," Hanson said. "We expect a lot of downside in all the bonds."
Puerto Rico's benchmark general obligation bonds issued in March 2014 slid on Friday to close at a record low of 77 cents on the dollar to yield 10.84 percent. (Reporting by a contributor in San Juan and Megan Davies in New York; Editing by Matthew Lewis, Toni Reinhold)
The New York Times on Sunday said the report would propose a bond exchange with new bonds offered with a longer or lower debt service. The newspaper cited Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla saying in an interview that the island's debts were not payable and that creditors would probably have to take significant concessions such as five year payment deferrals.
Puerto Rico is struggling with a $73 billion debt load and faltering economy while its Government Development Bank is running low on cash. The island is facing crunch time this week with several bond payments such as a July 1 deadline to make a $655 million payment on its general obligation debt while its struggling utility PREPA is in talks to avoid a possible default.
"We have to recognize we have a very serious problem with the fiscal situation of the island," House speaker Jaime Perello told press on Sunday.
Puerto Rico in February engaged a group of former International Monetary Fund economists to analyze its economic and financial stability and growth prospects. A separate report was also commissioned by consulting firm Conway MacKenzie.
Perello said that after the report is presented on Monday, work groups should be established. House minority leader Jenniffer Gonzalez said the governor would meet with mayors and lawmakers to discuss the report.
"(Next week is) the tipping point," said Adam Weigold, senior portfolio manager at Eaton Vance, on Friday.
Puerto Rico's debt problems could lead to a reduction in government services, investors said. However, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday the island is not contemplating a partial or full shutdown of government services.
Daniel Hanson, analyst at Height Securities, said the reports would allow the island to give an "opening bid" to creditors regarding a possible restructuring of the debt.
"Next week is probably a good buying opportunity," Hanson said. "We expect a lot of downside in all the bonds."
Puerto Rico's benchmark general obligation bonds issued in March 2014 slid on Friday to close at a record low of 77 cents on the dollar to yield 10.84 percent. (Reporting by a contributor in San Juan and Megan Davies in New York; Editing by Matthew Lewis, Toni Reinhold)
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Pit Bull Love Love LOVES Turkey Chick And Her Wee Pals
This pit bull adores baby birds in the best way possible.
Curious about a new turkey chick, the female pit bull is let into a cage of young fowl in this YouTube video posted June 24. She lets them walk on her back and head and she licks one little baby in the corner cause the Internet doesn't have enough incredibly sweet doggie videos right now.
At least we think so.
H/T Viral Videos
Curious about a new turkey chick, the female pit bull is let into a cage of young fowl in this YouTube video posted June 24. She lets them walk on her back and head and she licks one little baby in the corner cause the Internet doesn't have enough incredibly sweet doggie videos right now.
At least we think so.
H/T Viral Videos
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SpaceX rocket carrying supplies explodes, classified ‘mishap’ by FAA
The explosion of SpaceX’s unmanned rocket after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida Sunday morning has been classified as a “mishap”, the Federal Aviation Administration’s Pam Underwood said in an afternoon press conference.
The Falcon 9 rocket was on its seventh mission to deliver more than 4,000 pounds of supplies and materials to the crew at the International Space Station, when it experienced a “pressurization event” in the second stage of flight, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said.
SpaceX’s CEO Elon Musk tweeted about the pressurization issue.
There was an overpressure event in the upper stage liquid oxygen tank. Data suggests counterintuitive cause.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 28, 2015
Shotwell cautioned that they could not yet speculate as to the cause of the incident that occurred 2 minutes and 19 seconds into flight. And said that the setback will likely ground rockets for “a number of months or so.”
As for the crew at the International Space Station that was awaiting delivery of food, water and a water filtration system this Tuesday, they are “safe and things are fine,” NASA’s William H. Gerstenmaier told reporters.
Gerstenmaier added that there was “no negligence” and that the event simply demonstrates the “challenges of engineering and space flight.”
Watched #Dragon launch from @space_station Sadly failed Space is hard Teams assess below @NASAKennedy #YearInSpace pic.twitter.com/myi3col5Ix
— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) June 28, 2015
This is the third such recent incident, since NASA began outsourcing cargo resupply missions to contractors, the Washington Post reported. In October, an Orbital Antares rocket exploded and then in April a Russian Progress 59 went into a dizzying spin after reaching orbit. NASA retired its space shuttle fleet in 2011.
Lost in the Falcon 9 explosion was an International Docking Adapter on board the cargo craft. While the company does have another adapter in reserve, this equipment is vital for the space station docking of commercial crew spacecraft.
Biggest #CRS7 loss may be the International Docking Adapter (IDA-1) critical for future manned missions to #ISS pic.twitter.com/GaOu2iMNBP
— Tony Rice (@rtphokie) June 28, 2015
Students had also created more than 30 experiments that were en route to the International Space Station when the Falcon 9 exploded.
SpaceX will be conducting an investigation into the incident, which will be overseen by the FAA and could take several months to complete.
The post SpaceX rocket carrying supplies explodes, classified ‘mishap’ by FAA appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Sunday, June 28, 2015
If I Find an Abandoned Baby, Can I Keep It?
Welcome to the new FindLaw series, "If I Find," where we'll discuss the rule of finders keepers as it applies to different topics. We hope you'll check back regularly! When Quasimodo was left on the doorstep of Notre Dame,...
Virtual reality shows how dangerous it is to drive drunk and stoned
Looking inside the dome of the National Advanced Driving Simulator -1. Photo by University of Iowa National Advanced Driving Simulator
Virtual reality is shedding light on the dangers of driving stoned.
Currently in the U.S., police officers have limited resources to assess just how high a person is when driving under the influence of marijuana. Also unclear is the degree to which driving both drunk and stoned – the most common combination of substances seen among DUI cases — impairs one’s ability to pilot a vehicle.
Marilyn Huestis, a scientist at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, used the National Advanced Driving Simulator to tackle these issues one virtual road trip at a time.
The simulator consists of a car surrounded by a dome. Inside the dome is a 360-degree screen displaying the outside virtual world. The dome can tilt and move, mimicking the sensation of accelerating and braking.
This study was the first to record people’s saliva, blood and breath samples before, during and after driving under the influence. In the U.S., the only way to identify the amount of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, in a driver’s body is through blood samples. These samples are typically taken 90 minutes to four hours after being pulled over. However, other countries use saliva samples, which provide more rapid results.
The team began by asking occasional marijuana and alcohol users to participate in a 45-minute driving simulation. Each participant drove the simulator multiple times under various states of inebriation: sober, after inhaling THC, after drinking alcohol, and under the influence of both THC and alcohol. The route changed each session, but always included interstate driving and city driving at nighttime.
Among the researcher’s findings: THC impairs the ability to stay within traffic lanes.
“A concentration of 13.1 nanograms per milliliter THC was an equivalent impairment to that of the illegal limit for alcohol at 0.08 percent at the time of driving,” said Huestis, lead author of the study, which was published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
To put that in perspective, THC levels peak around 100 to 200 nanograms per milliliter within minutes of inhalation, but drop drastically into the single digits within a couple hours. Because of this plummet, the THC concentration measured while driving is much higher than what you would find in blood drawn hours after being suspected of driving under the influence.
This study found that the effects of driving both high and drunk were additive, meaning that if you smoke a joint and drink a beer, you are more impaired than if you had only smoked.
A view from inside the dome of the National Advanced Driving Simulator – 1. Photo by University of Iowa National Advanced Driving Simulator
Researchers also studied the effectiveness of roadside exams at detecting THC. In the U.S., if an officer suspects someone is driving while high, they are required by law to take the driver to a hospital to secure a blood sample. However, in Belgium, officers take an oral swab during the arrest that gets tested at the scene and later in a lab. Meanwhile In Germany, if someone tests positive for THC during a roadside saliva test, they have to submit a blood sample to confirm.
The team found that two saliva tests for THC — Dräger DrugTest® 5000 and Alere DDS2 — were as accurate as blood testing. The saliva tests remained accurate when participants were under the influence of both THC and alcohol.
A view from the outside of the National Advanced Driving Simulator – 1. The virtual screen and car sit inside the dome. Photo credit: University of Iowa National Advanced Driving Simulator
They also found that alcohol increases the body’s ability to absorb THC, meaning that you get more stoned if you smoke while drinking versus if you smoke while sober.
“When alcohol was present with cannabis, you had a significantly higher of peak THC,” Huestis said.
Cannabis also slows the rate at which alcohol is metabolized, dulling concentration. If you smoke before you drink, you’ll have to wait longer to sober up.
The post Virtual reality shows how dangerous it is to drive drunk and stoned appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
The presidential clown car: Trump trumps Walker, Bernie’s coming to WI, Jill Stein is in, and More
TRUMP ON TOP A FOX poll puts Jeb at #1 and Trump at #2 in New Hampshire. Scott Walker is not in the top. This Politico article says that the numbers are too good to be true and quotes pollsters who say “Everybody should calm down“. Whatever the case, I’m still going to take pleasure more »
Saturday, June 27, 2015
Supreme court to rule on lethal injection, Mercury emissions
Interns with media organizations run with the decision that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to marry at the Supreme Court in Washington June 26, 2015. With a 5-4 vote, the court ruled that same-sex marriage will be legal in all 50 states. Photo by Joshua Roberts/Reuters
Meeting on Monday for the final time until the fall, the Supreme Court has three cases remaining to be decided:
-Lethal injection: Death-row inmates in Oklahoma are objecting to the use of the sedative midazolam in lethal-injection executions after the drug was implicated in several botched executions. Their argument is that the drug does not reliably induce a coma-like sleep that would prevent them from experiencing the searing pain of the paralytic and heart-stopping drugs that follow sedation.
-Independent redistricting commissions: Roughly a dozen states have adopted independent commissions to reduce partisan politics in drawing congressional districts. The case from Arizona involves a challenge from Republican state lawmakers who complain that they can’t be completely cut out of the process without violating the Constitution.
-Mercury emissions: Industry groups and Republican-led states assert that environmental regulators overstepped their bounds by coming up with expensive limits on the emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from power plants without taking account of the cost of regulation at the start of the process. The first-ever limits on mercury emissions, more than a decade in the making, began to take effect in April.
The justices also could say Monday whether they will take on important cases for the term that begins in October on abortion, affirmative action and the power of unions that represent government workers.
The post Supreme court to rule on lethal injection, Mercury emissions appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Raw video from two-alarm house fire in Texas
Video by SCOTT ENGLE taken at a house fire handled by the Cypress Creek Fire Department on Laneview Drive in Harris County, Texas. A second-alarm was called on arrival around 2:00 Friday morning.
IMF Has More Advice for U.S. Federal Reserve
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) made headlines earlier this month when it cut its estimates for U.S. growth and suggested the Federal Reserve should not raise interest rates until next year. Thursday the IMF followed up with a suggestion that the Fed should stop publishing the “dots” every three months. The Fed’s dot plot shows the [...]
Caught on video: Brawl between family of cops, firefighters & medic at t-ball game
Investigations are underway by both the fire department and police department are underway in Gary, Indiana after a fight between police, firefighters and medics took place during a t-ball game. Those fighting are all connected to one family.
An argument between a boy’s father and his mother’s fiance launched a brawl at a T-ball game that left his parents and their significant others reporting injuries, police said. All four are Gary city employees.
Gary police Lts. Nelson Otano and Thomas Pawlak are investigating the criminal complaints filed Wednesday evening by Gary police Cpl. Shirletta Montgomery, 41, the boy’s stepmother; her husband and the boy’s father, Danielle Montgomery, 46, a Gary firefighter; Brandi Smith, 33, Gary Fire Department medic and the boy’s mother; her fiance, Larry Banks, also a Gary firefighter.
Supreme Court decisions illustrate GOP’s 2016 campaign challenges
Supporters of the Equal Rights Campaign in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., June 25, 2015. The day before the justices handed down the landmark decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, the Court upheld the availability of tax subsidies that are crucial to President Obama’s signature healthcare law. Photo by Joshua Roberts/Reuters
WASHINGTON — For the second time in two days, the Supreme Court struck at the heart of the Republican Party platform.
Yet the response to Friday’s ruling to give same-sex couples the right to marry was mild in comparison with the outrage that followed the high court’s decision Thursday to uphold President Barack Obama’s health care law. Friday’s ruling instead drew tepid responses from several Republicans who, in many cases, would like that issue to fade away.
The sharp contrast highlights the political challenges for a Republican Party searching for a winning playbook in 2016.
The GOP’s presidential class is ready to bet big their opposition to Obama’s health care law will resonate with voters. But facing a seismic shift in public opinion on gay marriage, several of the party’s most ambitious appear ready to turn the page on a social issue the GOP used for a generation to motivate its most passionate voters to turn out at the polls.
Perhaps no Republican presidential candidate better illustrated the contrast than former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who was ready with a fiery statement and a video, “This is not the end of the fight,” to decry the Supreme Court’s affirmation of the Affordable Care Act.
In a fundraising email, Bush warned that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton would offer “more of the same.” `’That is why I need you to make a one time-emergency contribution of $50, $25 or $10 to my campaign to ensure that NEVER happens.”
A day later, after the marriage ruling, Bush made no such fundraising pitch, offering only a one-paragraph statement. States should be allowed to make the decision, he said, adding, “I also believe that we should love our neighbor and respect others, including those making lifetime commitments.”
Polls show what’s motivating the temperance of some in the GOP: Americans are now more likely than not to support same-sex marriage, with some surveys showing as many as 6 in 10 in favor. The shift over 10 years has been dramatic. Polling by the Pew Research Center found support for same-sex marriage growing from 36 percent in 2005 to 57 percent in a poll conducted in May.
While most Republicans remain opposed to same-sex marriage, 59 percent of those between age 18 and 34 supported marriage rights for gay couples in Pew’s most recent poll.
To be sure, several Republicans running for president condemned the court’s same-sex marriage decision and pledged to continue to fight. “Marriage between a man and a woman was established by God, and no earthly court can alter that,” said Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who entered the race this week.
“It doesn’t settle anything,” National Organization for Marriage President Brian Brown said in an interview before the ruling, comparing the gay marriage decision to the landmark abortion decision Roe v. Wade. “It’s just like Roe. Do you think Roe settled the abortion debate?”
The anti-gay marriage organization has given each Republican presidential contender two weeks to return a signed pledge that, among other things locks candidates into supporting a constitutional amendment “that protects marriage as the union of one man and one woman.”
Some members of the GOP field signaled their openness to that idea on Friday. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker called Friday’s ruling “a grave mistake” and said “the only alternative left for the American people is to support an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to reaffirm the ability of the states to continue to define marriage.”
Still, several GOP candidates – Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Bush among them – have said they would not support such an amendment. Rubio was also among those who tried to stake a middle ground on Friday.
“While I disagree with this decision, we live in a republic and must abide by the law,” Rubio said, echoing a statement by Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich, who is expected to enter the 2016 contest in the coming weeks. Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said, “The governor has always believed in the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, but our nation’s highest court has spoken and we must respect its decision.”
Unlike the marriage issue, Republican opposition to health care needs no qualifiers. The first paid advertisement in response to the court’s health care ruling came within an hour from Americans for Prosperity, a nonprofit advocacy group founded by billionaire energy executives Charles and David Koch.
“We’ve been fighting this law for six years, and we’re going to make sure it stays right on the front burner,” said Tim Phillips, president of Americans for Prosperity. “We’ve always known repeal would be a long-term effort. We’ve never counted on the courts to do it for us. This law is fatally flawed and unpopular, so it makes perfect sense for candidates to keep talking about how it’s harming people.”
The post Supreme Court decisions illustrate GOP’s 2016 campaign challenges appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
PREPA Tries to Stave Off July 1 Debt Deadline
Greece isn’t the only one facing a looming deadline next week. Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority, known as PREPA, met Thursday and Friday with its creditors in New York in hopes of working out a deal that would allow it to make a July 1 $400 million payment due on its debt. No agreement had [...]
Friday, June 26, 2015
Same-Sex Couples Have Fundamental Right to Marry
Yesterday, Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Today, that definition is an unconstitutional violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled in Obergefell...
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan: Purple Line for DC, Bupkis for Baltimore
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan says the Purple Line, a long-planned light rail expansion of the DC transit system in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, will move forward. But Hogan stiffed the people of Baltimore by canceling the Red Line in favor of road projects.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan
Dan Malouff at Greater Greater Washington reports that Hogan made his announcement yesterday.
To reduce costs, trains on the Purple Line will come every seven and half minutes rather than every six. The state will not change the alignment, nor the number or location of stations.
The longer headways mean there need to be fewer trains, saving money, and also cutting out the need for one staging area. Hogan also announced that the state would now pay only $168 million, rather than, he said, the original $700 million (but the state’s future contribution had only been $333 million). Montgomery and Prince George’s would have to pay more, though the exact amount, and whether they can do so, was not yet clear.
Malouff notes that the Purple Line was in the works for decades, with construction set to begin this year, before Hogan threatened to nix the project.
As for the Red Line, according to Malouff, “Hogan said the line is not cost-effective.” Funds to add light rail in Baltimore “will instead go toward nearly $2 billion in road and bridge projects all across the state, including widening Route 404 on the Eastern Shore, some unspecified ‘congestion reduction’ on I-270, and new ramps to and from the Greeenbelt Metro to accommodate a future FBI headquarters.”
Elsewhere on the Network today: Mobilizing the Region reports that Albany’s failure to fund transit in New York City also hurts upstate economies, and the League of American Bicyclists examines what it takes to nurture bike-friendly businesses.
St. Louis Fire Department ambulance struck by bullet
The crew on the St. Louis Fire Department ambulance heard what they thought were either gunshots or fireworks Tuesday night as they drove in the 5900 block of Romaine in North St. Louis. They discovered this morning that it wasn’t fireworks.
Click here if the video above fails to play
The emergency crew contacted police to report the shots at approximately 11:45 p.m., but no victims or suspects were located.
On Wednesday morning, the crew discovered the ambulance they were in Tuesday night had ballistic damage, according to police.
How to Deal With Suspected Shoplifters (Legally)
I'm sure there are a million things you'd like to do to a shoplifter in your store. That's your merchandise (and hard earned revenue) walking out the door. But you don't want to get in trouble yourself, right? So...
Supreme Court upholds nationwide health care law subsidies
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court sent a clear message Thursday that President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul is here to stay, rejecting a major challenge that would have imperiled the landmark law and health insurance for millions of Americans.
Whether you call it the Affordable Care Act, Obamacare, or in the words of a dissenting justice, SCOTUScare, Obama’s signature domestic achievement is, as the president himself put it, “reality.”
The 6-3 ruling, which upheld financial aid to millions of low- and middle-income Americans to help pay for insurance premiums regardless of where they live, was the second major victory in three years for Obama in politically charged Supreme Court tests of the law. And it came on the same day the court gave him an unexpected victory on another subject, preserving a key tool the administration uses to fight housing bias.
Obama greeted news of the health care decision by declaring the law is no longer about politics but the benefits millions of people are receiving. “This is no longer about a law,” he said in the White House Rose Garden. “This is health care in America.”
Declining to concede, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio said Republicans, who have voted more than 50 times to undo the law, will “continue our efforts to repeal the law and replace it with patient-centered solutions that meet the needs of seniors, small business owners, and middle-class families.” However, he declined to commit to a vote this year.
Several Republican presidential candidates said they would continue the fight, ensuring it will be an issue in the campaign.
Other legal challenges are working their way through the courts, but they appear to pose lesser threats to the law, which passed Congress without a single Republican vote in 2010 and has now withstood two stern challenges at the Supreme Court.
At the court, Chief Justice John Roberts again wrote the opinion in support of the law, just as he did in 2012. His four liberal colleagues were with him three years ago and again on Thursday. Justice Anthony Kennedy, a dissenter in 2012, was part of the majority this time.
Roberts said that to read the law the way challengers wanted — limiting tax credits to people who live in states that set up their own health insurance marketplaces — would lead to a “calamitous result” that Congress could not have intended.
“Congress passed the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them,” Roberts declared in the majority opinion.
Justice Antonin Scalia, in a dissent he summarized from the bench, strongly disagreed. “We should start calling this law SCOTUScare,” he said, using an acronym for the Supreme Court and suggesting his colleagues’ ownership of the law by virtue of their twice stepping in to save it from what he considered worthy challenges.
His comment drew a smile from Roberts, his seatmate and the object of Scala’s ire.
Scalia said that Roberts’ 2012 decision that upheld the law and his opinion on Thursday “will publish forever the discouraging truth that the Supreme Court of the United States favors some laws over others and is prepared to do whatever it takes to uphold and assist its favorites.”
Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas joined the dissent, as they did in 2012.
Nationally, 10.2 million people have signed up for health insurance under the law. That includes 8.7 million who are receiving an average subsidy of $272 a month to help pay their premiums. Of those receiving subsidies, 6.4 million were at risk of losing that aid because they live in states that did not set up their own insurance exchanges.
The health insurance industry breathed a sigh of relief, and a national organization representing state regulators from both political parties said the court’s decision will mean stable markets for consumers.
Shares of publicly traded hospital operators including HCA Holdings Inc. and Tenet Healthcare Corp. soared after the ruling. Investors had worried that many patients would drop their coverage if they no longer had tax credits to help pay.
The legal case against nationwide subsidies relied on four words — “established by the state” — in the more than 900-page law.
The law’s opponents argued that the vast majority of people who now get help paying for premiums are ineligible for their federal tax credits. That is because roughly three dozen states opted against creating their own health insurance marketplaces, or exchanges, and instead rely on the federal healthcare.gov site to help people find coverage if they don’t have it through their jobs.
In the challengers’ view, the phrase “established by the state” demonstrated that subsidies were to be available only to people in states that set up their own exchanges.
The administration, congressional Democrats and 22 states responded that it would make no sense to interpret the law that way. The idea was to decrease the number of uninsured, preventing insurers from denying coverage because of “pre-existing” health conditions, requiring almost everyone to be insured and providing financial help to those who otherwise would spend too much of their paychecks on premiums.
The point of the last piece, the subsidies, is to keep enough people in the pool of insured to avoid triggering a disastrous decline in enrollment, a growing proportion of less healthy people and then premium increases.
Several portions of the law indicate that consumers can claim tax credits no matter where they live. No member of Congress said at the time that subsidies would be limited, and several states said in a separate brief to the court that they had no inkling they had to set up their own exchanges for their residents to get tax credits.
Roberts pointed out that the law “contains more than a few examples of inartful drafting,” including three separate sections numbered 1563. He said the court’s duty was to read the provision at issue in context and with the larger picture in mind.
In Scalia’s view, Roberts was engaging in “somersaults of statutory interpretation” that were redolent of the chief justice’s efforts to save the law in 2012.
The 2012 case took place in the midst of Obama’s re-election campaign, when the president was touting the largest expansion of the social safety net since the advent of Medicare nearly a half-century earlier. But at the time, promised benefits of the Affordable Care Act were mostly in the future. Many of its provisions had yet to take effect.
In 2015, the landscape has changed, although the partisan and ideological divisions remain.
The case is King v. Burwell, 14-114.
The post Supreme Court upholds nationwide health care law subsidies appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Gableman hopes to reel Rindfleisch (and Scott Walker’s secrets) back to Wisconsin
Dear Readers: We have some John Doe II news to talk about. I’m not absolutely positive what’s up – but I have some strong suspicions, which I will go into. Whatever’s going down, the timing of this could not be more threatening to Scott Walker’s impending presidential campaign. First you need to know that the more »
Sightseeing Plane Crashes In Alaska, Killing All 9 On Board, Authorities Say
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Authorities say all nine people aboard a sightseeing airplane died when it crashed Thursday in southeast Alaska.
Clint Johnson, head of the National Transportation Safety Board's Alaska office, confirmed weather is preventing the recovery of bodies Thursday evening off a cliff about 20 miles northeast of Ketchikan.
Attempts to recover the bodies will resume Friday.
The plane was carrying eight cruise ship passengers and a pilot. It went missing Thursday afternoon and was crashed against the granite rock face of a southeast Alaska cliff.
Clint Johnson, head of the National Transportation Safety Board's Alaska office, confirmed weather is preventing the recovery of bodies Thursday evening off a cliff about 20 miles northeast of Ketchikan.
Attempts to recover the bodies will resume Friday.
The plane was carrying eight cruise ship passengers and a pilot. It went missing Thursday afternoon and was crashed against the granite rock face of a southeast Alaska cliff.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Watch Obama Discuss Climate Change With Naturalist Sir David Attenborough
President Barack Obama is a major fan of Sir David Attenborough, the celebrated British naturalist and TV host who has created and narrated numerous science and nature documentaries for the BBC.
According to The Guardian, Obama invited Attenborough to the White House in May to celebrate Attenborough's 89th birthday. While there, the two taped an interview, in which Obama turned the tables and interviewed Attenborough, telling him that he grew up watching Attenborough's programs.
"I’ve been a huge admirer of your work for a very long time," Obama told Attenborough. "You’ve been a great educator as well as a great naturalist.”
The two discussed climate change, and Obama lamented what he sees as slow progress toward combating the issue.
“We’re not moving as fast as we need to, and part of what I know from watching your programs, and all the great work you’ve done, is that these ecosystems are all interconnected," Obama said. "If just one country is doing the right thing, but other countries are not, then we’re not going to solve the problem. We’re going to have to have a global solution to this."
Obama asked Attenborough what he thinks needs to be done in the fight against climate change.
“If we find ways of generating and storing power from renewable resources, we will make the problem with oil and coal disappear because economically, we’ll wish to use these other methods," Attenborough said. "If we do that, a huge step will be taken in solving the problems of the Earth. I think what’s required is an understanding and a gut feeling that the natural world is part of your inheritance. This is the only planet we’ve got and we’ve got to protect it. And people do feel that, deeply and instinctively, it is after all where you go in moments of celebration and in moments of grief.”
Obama also discussed during the interview how growing up in Hawaii and Indonesia gave him a greater appreciation of the environment.
Attenborough, a Cambridge-educated naturalist, has been creating and hosting science and nature-related programming since 1954. His shows have won numerous awards, and he has become a vocal environmentalist. He is known for his distinctive voice as a narrator.
The Guardian reported that despite his long career, Attenborough had never visited the White House, and he said Obama's invitation was "a considerable surprise." The interview will air simultaneously on BBC 1 in the United Kingdom and BBC America in the United States on Sunday.
This is not the first time Obama has turned the tables on a notable television figure he admires. In March, he interviewed David Simon, creator of HBO's "The Wire," about criminal justice reform, and told Simon that "The Wire" is his favorite TV show.
Watch a clip of Obama's interview with Attenborough above.
According to The Guardian, Obama invited Attenborough to the White House in May to celebrate Attenborough's 89th birthday. While there, the two taped an interview, in which Obama turned the tables and interviewed Attenborough, telling him that he grew up watching Attenborough's programs.
"I’ve been a huge admirer of your work for a very long time," Obama told Attenborough. "You’ve been a great educator as well as a great naturalist.”
The two discussed climate change, and Obama lamented what he sees as slow progress toward combating the issue.
“We’re not moving as fast as we need to, and part of what I know from watching your programs, and all the great work you’ve done, is that these ecosystems are all interconnected," Obama said. "If just one country is doing the right thing, but other countries are not, then we’re not going to solve the problem. We’re going to have to have a global solution to this."
Obama asked Attenborough what he thinks needs to be done in the fight against climate change.
“If we find ways of generating and storing power from renewable resources, we will make the problem with oil and coal disappear because economically, we’ll wish to use these other methods," Attenborough said. "If we do that, a huge step will be taken in solving the problems of the Earth. I think what’s required is an understanding and a gut feeling that the natural world is part of your inheritance. This is the only planet we’ve got and we’ve got to protect it. And people do feel that, deeply and instinctively, it is after all where you go in moments of celebration and in moments of grief.”
Obama also discussed during the interview how growing up in Hawaii and Indonesia gave him a greater appreciation of the environment.
Attenborough, a Cambridge-educated naturalist, has been creating and hosting science and nature-related programming since 1954. His shows have won numerous awards, and he has become a vocal environmentalist. He is known for his distinctive voice as a narrator.
The Guardian reported that despite his long career, Attenborough had never visited the White House, and he said Obama's invitation was "a considerable surprise." The interview will air simultaneously on BBC 1 in the United Kingdom and BBC America in the United States on Sunday.
This is not the first time Obama has turned the tables on a notable television figure he admires. In March, he interviewed David Simon, creator of HBO's "The Wire," about criminal justice reform, and told Simon that "The Wire" is his favorite TV show.
Watch a clip of Obama's interview with Attenborough above.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Justices uphold key tool for fighting housing bias
PBS NewsHour will live stream from the steps of the Supreme Court, where the Justices also handed down their decision on the fate of health care subsidies through the Affordable Care Act.
WASHINGTON — A sharply divided Supreme Court on Thursday preserved a key tool used for more than four decades to fight housing discrimination, handing a surprising victory to the Obama administration and civil rights activists.
The justices ruled 5-4 that federal housing law allows people to challenge lending rules, zoning laws and other housing practices that have a harmful impact on minority groups, even if there is no proof that companies or government agencies intended to discriminate.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, often a swing vote, joined the court’s four liberal members in upholding the use of so-called “disparate impact” cases.
The ruling is a victory for housing advocates who argued that the 1968 Fair Housing Act allows challenges to race-neutral policies that have negative effects on minorities. The Justice Department has used disparate impact lawsuits to win more than $500 million in legal settlements from companies accused of bias against black and Hispanic customers. It was a defeat for banks, insurance companies and other business groups that claimed such lawsuits — often based on statistics — are not explicitly allowed under the landmark housing law that sought to eliminate segregation that has long existed in residential housing.
“The court acknowledges the Fair Housing Act’s continuing role in moving the nation toward a more integrated society,” Kennedy said.
The White House issued a statement saying the decision “reflects the reality that discrimination often operates not just out in the open, but in more hidden forms.” And Attorney General Loretta Lynch said the Justice Department would continue to vigorously enforce the Fair Housing Act “with every tool at its disposal – including challenges based on unfair and unacceptable discriminatory effects.”
In upholding the tactic, the high court preserved a legal strategy that has been used for more than 40 years to attack discriminateion in zoning laws, occupancy rules, mortgage lending practices and insurance underwriting. Every federal appeals court to consider it has upheld the practice, though the Supreme Court had never previously ruled.
Civil rights groups and the Obama administration had tried for years to keep the issue out of the Supreme Court, fearing that conservatives wanted to end the strategy. Two previous cases that reached the court were settled or strategically withdrawn just weeks before oral argument.
The latest case involved an appeal from Texas officials accused of violating the Fair Housing Act by awarding federal tax credits in a way that kept low-income housing out of white neighborhoods.
A federal appeals court said a Dallas-based fair housing group, The Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., could use statistics to show that the effect of policies used by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs had a negative impact on black residents.
The fair housing group said that even if there were no motive to discriminate, the government’s policies still harmed black residents. The effect, the group claimed, was perpetuating segregated neighborhoods and denying blacks a chance to move into areas with better schools and lower crime.
Texas officials argued that it was unfair to have to justify or change policies that don’t facially discriminate. While disparate impact has been used routinely in employment discrimination cases, they said such claims were not expressly written into the housing law. They argued that allowing them would essentially force them to make race-conscious decisions to avoid liability.
Writing for the majority, Kennedy said language in the housing law banning discrimination “because of race” allows for disparate impact cases. He said such lawsuits “may prevent segregated housing patterns that might otherwise result from covert and illicit stereotyping.”
Kennedy was joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.
In dissent, Justice Samuel Alito said disparate impact was not specifically allowed in the text of the housing law.
“Something has gone badly awry when a city can’t even make slumlords kill rats without fear of a lawsuit,” Alito said.
Alito was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas.
Thomas also wrote separately to question the very foundation of the disparate impact theory, which the Supreme Court first allowed in employment discrimination cases in 1971.
“Racial imbalances do not always disfavor minorities,” Thomas said, noting that over 70 percent of National Basketball Association players are black.
“To presume that these and all other measurable disparities are products of racial discrimination is to ignore the complexities of human existence,” Thomas said.
Sherrilyn Ifill, president of NAACP Legal Defense Fund, told reporters outside the court that the housing law was critical in bridging the nation’s racial divide, especially in light of the shooting at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina.
“Anyone who has been paying attention in the last week knows that we can no longer afford to live the way we have as two separate bifurcated parts of this country,” Ifill said.
The case is Texas Dept. of Housing and Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., 13-1371.
The post Justices uphold key tool for fighting housing bias appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
Mike Huckabee: 'Donor Class' Pushed Senate Republicans To Approve Obama's Fast-Track Trade Authority
CORYDON, Iowa –- Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) on Thursday criticized Senate Republicans for voting to approve fast-track trade authority for President Barack Obama, blaming the influence of the "donor class."
“I expect better of the people that we send" to Congress, Huckabee, a 2016 presidential candidate, said during a campaign stop in Corydon, Iowa. "I understand the donor class has pushed them and pushed them to vote for this bill.”
The Senate on Wednesday cleared a bill to give Obama fast-track approval of international trade deals. Fast-track authority would allow the president to submit trade agreements to Congress for an accelerated vote without amendments.
"74 percent of Republicans in America thought it was a bad idea, and most of the Republicans that voted for it, admitted they haven’t read that bill either,” Huckabee told Iowans at a pizzeria.
Huckabee, who traveled to 37 states last year to campaign for Senate Republicans, said it’s time to take a stand against power, money and influence.
“We went out and helped Republicans win in the last election cycle, we sent them to Congress to curtail the executive overreach of this president on issues like immigration and Obamacare,” Huckabee said. “What did our Republicans do this week -- they gave this president more power.”
Huckabee said if he's elected president, he wouldn't seek fast-track authority, pointing out recent trade agreements that have led to the loss of U.S. jobs.
“We have allowed our trade partners to manipulate their currency to dump products into our market place,” he said. “The result is some of your friends, neighbors and family members who have lost jobs in this country, have lost it because we didn’t enforce the trade bills we have, yet we are going to enter into a new one.”
Four Republican Presidential candidates serving in the U.S. Senate participated in the fast-track vote. Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) voted against giving the president fast-track authority, while Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) approved it.
Watch Huckabee's remarks above.
“I expect better of the people that we send" to Congress, Huckabee, a 2016 presidential candidate, said during a campaign stop in Corydon, Iowa. "I understand the donor class has pushed them and pushed them to vote for this bill.”
The Senate on Wednesday cleared a bill to give Obama fast-track approval of international trade deals. Fast-track authority would allow the president to submit trade agreements to Congress for an accelerated vote without amendments.
"74 percent of Republicans in America thought it was a bad idea, and most of the Republicans that voted for it, admitted they haven’t read that bill either,” Huckabee told Iowans at a pizzeria.
Huckabee, who traveled to 37 states last year to campaign for Senate Republicans, said it’s time to take a stand against power, money and influence.
“We went out and helped Republicans win in the last election cycle, we sent them to Congress to curtail the executive overreach of this president on issues like immigration and Obamacare,” Huckabee said. “What did our Republicans do this week -- they gave this president more power.”
Huckabee said if he's elected president, he wouldn't seek fast-track authority, pointing out recent trade agreements that have led to the loss of U.S. jobs.
“We have allowed our trade partners to manipulate their currency to dump products into our market place,” he said. “The result is some of your friends, neighbors and family members who have lost jobs in this country, have lost it because we didn’t enforce the trade bills we have, yet we are going to enter into a new one.”
Four Republican Presidential candidates serving in the U.S. Senate participated in the fast-track vote. Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) voted against giving the president fast-track authority, while Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) approved it.
Watch Huckabee's remarks above.
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Raw video: 7-alarm fire burns abandoned mill & homes in Massachusetts
NECN:
Two firefighters were injured fighting a massive 7-alarm fire at the Anglo Mill Complex in Webster, Massachusetts, on Thursday afternoon.
The fire tore through the abandoned mills at 103 N. Main St. and spread to some nearby homes, fire officials confirmed.
Webster Fire Chief Brian Hickey said two firefighters were taken to the hospital. One had a high fever and the other was suffering chest pains.
Webster Fire Chief Brian Hickey said the vacant mill was “on my radar” and was slated for demolition soon. Three buildings are on fire. There was never a chance for an interior attack, it was all “defensive mode” keeping firefighters outside and battling the blaze using master streams from ladder and tower trucks.
The fire sent embers blowing all around town and started several small fires. Some homes nearby were evacuated after embers burned the roofs.
Video from #Webster fire. Engines from Upton Douglas and Grafton on this side. pic.twitter.com/bhL1UQ9yj8
— Brad Petrishen (@BPetrishenTG) June 25, 2015
Fire in #Webster, D7 Strike Teams have been activated @auburnmassfire on scene with other companies from the district pic.twitter.com/AjoylW5bNf
— Auburn Fire Rescue (@auburnmassfire) June 25, 2015
Webster MA – fire chief Brian Hickey tells us firefighters never got inside burning mill. “It was all defensive ops.” pic.twitter.com/yZaM2Duoel
— Kim Ring (@KimRingTG) June 25, 2015
Raging fire in Websterz pic.twitter.com/BZ6NsTKRfb
— Christine Peterson (@ChrisPetersonTG) June 25, 2015
Webster Fire. pic.twitter.com/nL2njPZJP5
— Christine Peterson (@ChrisPetersonTG) June 25, 2015
Webster Fire. @telegramdotcom pic.twitter.com/T8R0aRhsYl
— Christine Peterson (@ChrisPetersonTG) June 25, 2015
The back side of the building collapsed. pic.twitter.com/dUUMw2SstE
— Christine Peterson (@ChrisPetersonTG) June 25, 2015
SUSD trip to Vegas cleared up
Earlier this week, I was handed a hand-written note that was sent to the newsroom with no return address.
“200 Stockton Unified employees went to Las Vegas. Is this supposed to help educate the students?” is all it read.
Now, before you start picturing teachers and administrators sitting at slot machines and throwing television sets out a hotel room window at The Bellagio, in reality, the Vegas trip is in fact helping educate students.
A group of 200 teachers, counselors and principals from Stockton Unified took part in a Professional Learning Communities conference in Las Vegas earlier this month, explained district spokeswoman Dianne Barth in an email.
While seeing the words “teachers,” “education,” and “Vegas” together in a sentence is certainly worth a slight head tilt, the conference is dedicated to professional development for educators set in a group setting.
High performing districts have board members attend so they can build shared knowledge. Teachers and principals can collaborate ideas and are asked questions such as “What are you trying to teach? How do you know if your students learned and understood the material you taught? What do you do if they did not? What do you do next if they did get it?”
“This conference is popular because the teachers who have gone before have come back saying they got a lot out of it,” said Barth. Stockton Unified has attended the PLC conference for the last three years and she said Lodi is another district that does the same.
“The trip is approved for those attending from individual schools and costs for attendance were paid out of categorical funds targeted for professional development school site councils,” Barth wrote.
Edison High School Principal Brian Biedermann said his school has been practicing the PLC process for six years and he has taken a majority of his staff to PLCs conferences. He agrees that there’s nothing quite like the renewed energy, commitment, and shared knowledge created, and Edison is always excited to participate.
“I can see how some could view conferences in Vegas as a waste of time. That is a narrow minded view,” said Edison High School Principal in an email.
“My team has several pre-planning meetings (to prep for the conference) and we meet several times when we return to capture our learning and prepare our action plans for the coming year.”
It’s far from lounging poolside and sharing a vodka-cranberry with a Playboy bunny.
Republican-led Congress grants Obama fast track trade authority win
The Senate on Wednesday backed fast track trading authority for President Obama. Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters
The measure to strengthen Obama’s hand in global trade talks cleared the Senate on a vote of 60-38, and will go to the White House for his signature — less than two weeks after it was temporarily derailed in the House in an uprising of Democratic lawmakers.
A second bill, to renew an expiring program of federal aid for workers disadvantaged by imports, was on track to pass the Senate in short order. It would then go to the House, where a final vote was expected on Thursday.
The rapid sequence of events capped the end of a back-and-forth struggle that played out slowly over months, with Obama, Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on one side, and the union-backed Democratic leadership of the House and Senate on the other.
The pace accelerated dramatically less than two weeks ago, when House Democrats prevailed in an early showdown that sent the White House and congressional GOP leaders into a rescue operation.
On Wednesday, McConnell, a frequent Obama antagonist, praised the president and Democrats who joined the GOP on the bipartisan measure vigorously sought by the nation’s chief executive.
“We were really pleased to see President Obama pursue an idea we’ve long believed in,” McConnell said. “We thank him for his efforts to help us pass a bill to advance it.”
The measure would allow Obama to negotiate global trade deals that Congress could approve or reject, but not change. The administration was seeking the “fast track” as it works to complete a round of trade negotiations involving 12 nations along both sides of the Pacific Ocean, including Japan.
Obama’s victory comes at a pivotal juncture in his second term. He is bracing for a Supreme Court ruling on his landmark health care law, and next week’s deadline is approaching for reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear program.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, hailed the measure as “the most important bill that will pass the Senate this year,” and one that will prove to be an aid to the economy.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, countered shortly before the vote that it would be nothing of the sort. He said it would lead to “corporate handouts, worker sellouts,” as he said had been the case with the North American Free Trade Agreement and other deals across the past two decades.
The issue of global trade had opened the most striking breach between a Democratic president and the lawmakers who overwhelmingly backed him on health care and other hard-fought issues. But the White House tried to cast a soft light on the division.
“We have Republican majorities in Congress working closely with Democratic minorities in Congress to build bipartisan support for legislation that then arrives on the desk of a Democratic president,” said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. That’s how policy should be made “in an era of divided government,” he told reporters.
Boehner, the Republican House speaker, called the trade votes “a big win for the American people. Trade is good for American farmers, for manufacturers and small businesses.”
The 12 participating nations in the current Pacific-based talks account for 40 percent of the world’s economy, and include Japan, Malaysia, Australia, Canada and Mexico. China is not a member, and Obama says a ratified Pacific-rim pact will reassert the United States’ muscular role in international standards for commerce, treatment of workers and the environment.
House Democrats dealt Obama a humiliating rebuke on June 12, when they derailed his trade package only hours after he traveled to the Capitol to personally ask for their help. Republican leaders, with White House support, restructured the legislative package and passed its key elements with big GOP margins, plus modest Democratic support.
A final potential hurdle in the House crumbled Wednesday when Democratic leaders said most colleagues would support a job retraining program that Obama wants.
Some anti-free-trade Democrats had urged defeat of the program, known as trade adjustment assistance, or TAA. Typically a Democratic priority, it’s meant to help workers displaced by trade agreements.
Some saw the program’s possible demise as a last-ditch way to pressure Obama not to sign fast track into law. Obama had said he wanted to enact the fast track measure and the retraining bill simultaneously. But with fast track headed to his desk, House Democrats acknowledged they no longer had leverage to force his hand.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi told colleagues that she would vote for trade adjustment assistance. She said it was time to start scrutinizing the Pacific-rim deal.
“My standard for any trade agreement is that it must create good-paying 21st century jobs, increase the paychecks of American workers, and it must do so recognizing the relationship between commerce and climate,” Pelosi told colleagues in a letter.
The post Republican-led Congress grants Obama fast track trade authority win appeared first on PBS NewsHour.
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