What’s interesting in the news today?

As always, Open Thread, so feel free to share with the group. 🙂

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This first one, I’m troubled by. I’m uncomfortable with the idea of arresting people for not taking their prescribed medications.

From TheNYPost

“The city is making a major push to sweep the streets of dangerous, mentally ill New Yorkers — and has even compiled a most-wanted list, The Post has learned.”

“Those warrants mean that the patients are not wanted for a crime but instead are being sought because they are not getting their court-ordered treatment.”

“In the past, the city Department of Health would ask cops for help finding mentally ill people who aren’t taking their court-mandated meds so they could be taken to clinics. But that only applied to those who had known addresses — and patients who went off the grid were rarely pursued, the sources said.”

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File this under “Not shocking”.

From TheWashingtonExaminer

“Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., indicated that Senate Democrats would renege on their promise to pass the first budget in four years if Republicans did not agree to raise taxes in order to avert the automatic spending cuts mandated by sequestration.

“Senator Murray is working on a budget right now and we hope we can get that done,” Reed said on CNN, referring to Senate Budget Committee chairman Patty Murray, D-Wash. “But we need time. So the sequestration will prevent — preempt us from getting a budget done and other factors.””

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In a sometimes contentious hearing, economists told the House that despite Dem claims, unemployment benefits hurt employment rates. Extensions of UC would only worsen this. Nancy Pelosi hardest hit by the news.

From TheWashingtonFreeBeacon

“Unemployment insurance and other forms of government benefits act as a disincentive to work, economists across the political spectrum agree.

Three different economic experts testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Job Creation, and Regulatory Affairs on Thursday afternoon during a heated and contentious hearing. All said that government benefits that kick in during unemployment decrease the economic incentive to pursue work, although they disagreed about the extent of the benefits’ effect.”

“Casey Mulligan, an economics professor at the University of Chicago and author of a recent book on the effect that safety net programs have had on employment, argued that the government’s expansion of assistance programs in the wake of the recession actually has made it financially harmful to return to work in some cases.”

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According to the Chicago teachers union, the problem isn’t their fault. It’s those silly standards. And students agree, so it must be true. 🙄

From TheDailyCaller

“The Chicago Teachers Union urged school administrators nationwide to discontinue the use of  standardized tests, deriding them as corporate tools.

The CTU recently released a report arguing that standardized tests are a  faulty measure of student achievement. They also advance a pro-corporate agenda,  the report said.

“Corporate interests continue to push towards a test‐centered public  education system that is clearly harmful to students,” according to the  report.”

“The union’s anti-testing push is part of a broader campaign by teachers unions  nationwide. Teachers at one Seattle high school recently went on strike, refusing to administer a test that they feared would be  used to hold them accountable.”

Oh something’s harming students alright. Try looking in a mirror to find the guilty parties.

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And if you missed John McCain on Meet the Press, you should check it out. He put David Gregory in his place.

You can watch it here from HotAir

“If I had tried to guess on Saturday which Sunday talk show would get the most contentious, the pairing of John McCain with NBC’s David Gregory on Meet the Press would have come in last on my most-likely list.  After all, this clip starts off by discussing the confirmation of Chuck Hagel, which McCain has already said should take place.  McCain threw a wrench in the plans last week by supporting a hold/filibuster on his former friend and Senate colleague, though, and Gregory wants to know why.  That’s when the fireworks began, as McCain alleged a “massive cover-up” about the White House handling of the Benghazi attack, and Gregory acted as though it was the first time he’s heard of such a claim:”

““I’m asking you, do you care whether four Americans died?” McCain said. “And shouldn’t people be held accountable for the fact that four Americans died?”

“Well, what you said was the cover-up–a cover-up of what?” Gregory asked.

“Of the information concerning the deaths of four brave Americans,” McCain replied. “The information has not been forthcoming. You obviously believe that it has. I know that it hasn’t. And I’ll be glad to send you a list of the questions that have not been answered, including ‘What did the president do and who did he talk to the night of the attack on Benghazi?’”

A least Gregory didn’t use the “What difference does it make” defense.

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What’s interesting in the news today?

Lot’s out there today.

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Since it’s President’s Day, let’s start there.

From RealClearPolitics

“Obama’s Gangster Government Operates Above the Law”

“Presidents’ State of the Union addresses are delivered in the chamber of the House of Representatives in the Capitol. The classical majesty of this building where laws are made symbolizes the idea that we live under the rule of law.

Unfortunately, the 44th president is running an administration that too often seems to ignore the rule of law.”

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Typical liberal response. Throw more money at obvious failures. Just like with public education.

From NationalReview

“It is a little-appreciated irony of history that the big-bang theory was at first welcomed by Christian thinkers such as Pope Pius XII, and rejected by such scientific icons as Albert Einstein, for the same reason: It suggests a creation event, or at least leaves room for one, which, to the mind of Einstein, a devotee of the steady-state theory of the universe, was intellectually unacceptable, even though the evidence supported it. Such is the well-earned prestige of the scientific calling that Barack Obama, not known to be a man of science, famously promised to “restore science to its rightful place” in political life, unlike those flat-earthers in the Bush administration. We all adore science — right up until the moment it tells us something we do not wish to hear.

During his State of the Union address, President Obama demanded a massive expansion of federal spending on pre-kindergarten education, just a few weeks after having attempted to bury a report from the Department of Health and Human Services finding that the largest program in the field, Head Start, produces negligible results, and sometimes produces negative results. The study, released on the Friday before Christmas so as to minimize public attention to it, was hardly the first of its kind. The best scientific research we have — going back decades now — finds that Head Start does not provide the promised benefits, and indeed provides few if any benefits at all despite its extravagant annual cost of $23,000 per student, well more than double the cost of many highly regarded private schools and full-day kindergartens. Studies of early-childhood-education programs many orders of magnitude more intensive than Head Start come to similar conclusions.”

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It seems the story from the other day on a gun maker snubbing NY has an update. Others have joined the cause and more are still deciding whether to join. 🙂

From Breitbart

“Six gun companies have announced plans to stop selling any of their products to any government agency in states that severely limit the rights of private gun ownership.

Disappointed with New York State lawmakers and other jurisdictions around the country who have passed strict gun control legislation, the companies—composed of firearm manufacturers, gunsmiths, and sporting goods retailers—have announced these policies in the past week.

Their various statements emphasize that such laws create a class of government employees with rights and a class of citizens without rights. Thus, they refuse to aid the enforcement of such inequality.”

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I’m not a big fan of Nascar, but this is noteworthy. History has been made.

From YahooSports

“A year after making her Sprint Cup Series debut in the same race, Danica Patrick will lead the field to the green flag for the Daytona 500 after qualifying on the pole during Sunday’s front row qualifying session at Daytona International Speedway.

It wasn’t necessarily a surprise. Patrick posted the fastest speed of Saturday’s two qualifying practices and ran slightly faster during her second qualifying lap on Sunday, knocking owner and teammate Tony Stewart from the provisional pole. She’s the first woman to win a pole position in Sprint Cup Series history.”

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In other news, now you know what Occupy is up to these days.

From TheLATimes

“Dozens of protesters gathered outside the Los Angeles Police Department headquarters downtown Saturday afternoon, holding signs of support for Christopher Dorner, the fired police officer suspected of killing four people.

Those gathered said they were protesting police corruption and the way the massive manhunt for Dorner was conducted. Authorities said Dorner appears to have died from a self-inflected gunshot wound after a shootout with police in Big Bear on Tuesday, ending a deadly rampage that stretched across Southern California.”

More on his “supporters” here at Breitbart

“Occupy Los Angeles has chosen to honor Chris Dorner in the wake of his death, despite the body count he apparently amassed.”

“The statement of support and solidarity was posted on the Occupy Los Angeles’ official Facebook page Wednesday. The statement came in the form of a posted picture captioned with the phrases “Rest In Power Chris Dorner” and “Assassinated By The Police for Trying To Expose LAPD Corruption.”

The Occupy Los Angeles page has nearly 56,000 likes and supporters. At the time of this article’s posting, nearly 900 Occupy Supporters “Liked” the expression of support for the cop-killer, and nearly 400 users reposted the image to their own Facebook accounts.

Many of the nearly 400 comments left by Occupy Los Angeles followers expressed support, with some going as far as saying “Kill Kill Kill the White man,” and “LAPD got their Karma.””

Just a reminder on what the guy they support did, from WeaselZippers.

“For those on the left that talk of some greater mission of Dorner’s, let’s look at how he went about supposedly executing that mission. Yes, executing, because he allegedly killed four people who had nothing to with any conceivable LAPD corruption.

He allegedly killed Monica Quan because she was the daughter of his former counsel, and he wanted revenge for what he perceived as Randall Quan’s failing him.

Keith Lawrence was killed because he happened to be the fiancée of Monica. They had just become engaged. They were about to start their life together. Dorner took that away, for revenge.

Michael Crain, was shot and killed in an ambush before dawn Feb. 7 as he and an officer he was training stopped their marked patrol car at a traffic light at Magnolia and Arlington avenues in Riverside, police said. The other officer, who has not been identified, was injured. Their crime? Being police officers who unfortunately crossed the path of Dorner’s mad revenge.  Michael  had two children that will grow up without a father and a wife that adored him.

Finally, Jeremiah McKay, who was shot at the cabin in the woods. He had a wife and 3 children, one of whom was just four months old.”

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And last, a piece by Walter E. Williams.

From InvestorsBusinessDaily

“Our Real Problem Is Cultural Decay, Not Guns”

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What’s interesting in the news today?

Open Thread, you decide.

Here’s a few to get things rollin’.

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File this first one under “Unintended Consequences”.

From AmmoLand.com,  

York Arms Cancels All Its New York Police Orders

“Based on the recent legislation in New York, we are prohibited from selling  rifles and receivers to residents of New York.

We have chosen to extend that prohibition to all governmental agencies  associated with or located within New York.

As a result we have halted sales of rifles, short barreled rifles, short  barreled shotguns, machine guns, and silencers to New York governmental  agencies.”

There’s also an effort under way to get SIG, Smith and Wesson, and Glock on board to do the same.

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Jesse Jackson Jr. to plead guilty, with jail time.

From Politico

“Former Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) will plead guilty to conspiring  with his wife to illegally spend $750,000 in campaign funds on personal  expenses, including a $43,000 Rolex watch, fur coats and memorabilia associated  with Michael Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Bruce Lee, according  to information obtained by POLITICO.

The charges against him include conspiracy, making false statements, and mail and wire fraud.”

“Prosecutors will recommend a prison sentence of between 46 months and 57 months  for Jackson Jr., as well as a fine of $10,000 to $100,000, and forfeiture of a  yet-to-be-determined portion of the misspent $750,000 in campaign funds.”

His wife and an Alderwoman, as well as Jr.’s campaign manager/treasurer has also pled to a tax charge.

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But hey, at least the Obama admin is trying to make easier for them to find employment when they get out.

Should it be a federal crime to refuse to hire ex-convicts and felons? The EEOC thinks so. I can see so many places where this could be a huge problem. And let’s be honest, this is just another attempt to push for the restoration of voting rights as well.

From TheWallStJournal

“The EEOC ignored that judicial thrashing and pressed on. Last April, the agency unveiled its “Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions,” declaring that “criminal record exclusions have a disparate impact based on race and national origin.”

Though blacks make up only 13% of the U.S. population, more blacks were arrested nationwide for robbery, murder and manslaughter in 2009 than whites, according to the FBI. The imprisonment rate for black men “was nearly 7 times higher than White men and almost 3 times higher than Hispanic men,” notes the EEOC. These statistical disparities inspired the EEOC to rewrite the corporate hiring handbook to level the playing field between “protected groups” and the rest of the workforce.”

“Most businesses perform criminal background checks on job applicants, but the EEOC guidance frowns on such checks and creates new legal tripwires that could spark federal lawsuits. One EEOC commissioner who opposed the new policy, Constance Barker, warned in April that “the only real impact the new Guidance will have will be to scare business owners from ever conducting criminal background checks. . . . The Guidance tells them that they are taking a tremendous risk if they do.””

Once again liberals attempt to remove the punishments associated with committing criminal acts. When you are a convicted criminal, certain job opportunities become unavailable to you. And that makes sense. This doesn’t.

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And lastly, like above, more waste of taxpayer dollars.

From JudicialWatch

“Judicial Watch today released previously unseen USDA videos revealing a compulsory “Cultural Sensitivity Training” program requiring USDA employees to bang on tables, chanting in unison “The pilgrims were illegal aliens” while being instructed to no longer use the word “minorities,” but to replace it with “emerging majorities.” Judicial Watch received the videos pursuant to a May 18, 2012, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

The sensitivity training sessions, described as “a huge expense” by diversity awareness trainer and self-described “citizen of the world” Samuel Betances, were held on USDA premises. The diversity event is apparently part of what USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack described in a memo sent to all agency employees as a “new era of Civil Rights” and “a broader effort towards cultural transformation at USDA.”  In 2011 and 2012, the USDA paid Betances and his firm nearly $200,000 for their part in the “cultural transformation” program.

USDA Training Administrator, Vincent Loran, in an October 10, 2011, email previously revealed by Judicial Watch, asked Betances for a copy of a training video vowing to keep it secret. “It will not be used for or show [sic] in any way shape or form,” Loran promised.  Nevertheless, Judicial Watch was able to obtain the video.”

🙄

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