“If you ask folks on the left why they oppose building a serious wall on the southern border with Mexico, you will likely hear the same rehashed and redundant claim that such a barrier would somehow be “racist.” This was precisely the angle they took to attack Donald Trump during the 2016 election, and they haven’t yet come to grips with how detrimental it is to remain attached to this falsehood.
In reality, a leaky border isn’t just allowing undocumented migrants who may or may not find themselves in the naturalization process one day, but also all other people – many of whom have no attachment to the idea of law and order. This includes traffickers of drugs, guns, and even people.
In the coming days, one House committee will reveal bombshell revelations about the border situation…and the federal government’s role.
A House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday will feature the testimony from a whistleblower who will warn lawmakers that the U.S. has become the “middleman” in a multibillion-dollar migrant child trafficking operation at the border.
The hearing, “The Biden Border Crisis: Exploitation of Unaccompanied Alien Children,” will be held by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement and will examine the surge in unaccompanied children (UACs) at the southern border.
A House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday will feature the testimony from a whistleblower who will warn lawmakers that the U.S. has become the “middleman” in a multibillion dollar migrant child trafficking operation at the border.
The hearing, “The Biden Border Crisis: Exploitation of Unaccompanied Alien Children,” will be held by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement and will examine the surge in unaccompanied children (UACs) at the southern border.
According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics, the number of UACs who arrive at the border has swelled from 33,239 in fiscal year 2020 to more than 146,000 in fiscal year 2021 and 152,000 in fiscal year 2022. So far in fiscal year 2023, there have been more than 70,000 encounters of unaccompanied children.
Here is where things go awry:
When child migrants are encountered at the border, they are transferred into the custody of Health and Human Services (HHS) and then united with a sponsor – typically a parent or family member already in the U.S.
But the Biden administration has been rocked by a number of reports that officials have been unable to make contact with more than 85,000 child migrants; and more recently, administration officials reportedly ignored signs of “explosive” growth in child labor. A number have been forced into indentured servitude to pay back smugglers and have worked in dire conditions.
Some of the outcomes involved here are unforgivable.
The Wednesday hearing will hear from three witnesses: Tara Lee Rodas, a HHS whistleblower formerly with an inspector general’s office; Sheena Rodriguez, founder and president of Alliance for a Safe Texas; and Jessica Vaughn, director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies.
Rodas will warn of a problem that predates the administration but has increased significantly during the recent migrant crisis, according to a copy of her written testimony obtained by Fox News Digital.
“Today, children will work overnight shifts at slaughterhouses, factories, restaurants to pay their debts to smugglers and traffickers. Today, children will be sold for sex,” she will say. “Today, children will call a hotline to report they are being abused, neglected, and trafficked. For nearly a decade, unaccompanied children have been suffering in the shadows.””
Ruled by clowns, and reported on by propagandists stooges.
What’s the process for getting your question pre-approved by the Biden regime? Who do you send it to for approval? Do you find it debasing to submit yourself to this process, and then fail to disclose this coordination to viewers and readers? https://t.co/MFlBRAeowa
Hi @cmsub – Who in the Biden White House is making you submit your questions prior to you asking them? Or is this a voluntary service you guys are offering?
This is what the media has become. They are just as complicit as he is. They are a part of it, which we all know, this is just another blatant example.
Montana State Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D) ahead of vote to bar her from the state House for the rest of the session:
“I have had friends who have taken their lives because of these bills … When I rose up and said, 'There is blood on your hands,' I was not being hyperbolic.” pic.twitter.com/cNZ3nTAVIx
And this is how Democrats coddle them and mainstream their anti-Semitism….
“Islamist antisemitism in the US masked by alliance with far left – study
INSS report argues that rebranding of extremist groups as human rights organizations threatens to bring fringe ideas into the mainstream”
“As antisemitic attacks continue to rise in the United States, a growing alliance with far-left organizations has shielded US Islamist groups from scrutiny of their antisemitic statements and ideas, a study by an Israeli think tank warned.
“US Islamist groups and leaders have increasingly sought common cause with progressive left-wing groups that promote minority rights and intersectionality among racial, ethnic, and religious minorities in their efforts to build coalitions around common interests,” charged Yehudit Barsky and Ehud Rosen, authors of the Institute for National Security Studies report “Islamist Antisemitism in the United States,” set to be published Tuesday.
The “red-green” coalition is based on a narrative that portrays the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as an anticolonial struggle, and US Muslims as victims of racism on par with other marginalized minorities in the US, said the INSS study.
The alliance also seeks to delegitimize Jewish communal organizations, according to Barsky and Rosen, by portraying them as part of a white power structure in the US that is ineligible for inclusion in progressive coalitions.
“Within these coalitions,” charged the study, “US Islamists have sought to boycott and delegitimize progressive Zionists and supporters of Israel, deeming them as oppressors and illegitimate participants.”
Barsky is a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, and Rosen is a team member of the INSS’s project on Contemporary Antisemitism in the United States.
The study is the latest installment in an ongoing INSS series on antisemitism in the US.
Leading Islamist organizations like American Muslims for Palestine and the Council on American Islamic Relations, the authors argued, seek to challenge the right of mainstream Jewish and pro-Israel organizations to define antisemitism and to call themselves civil rights organizations. A campaign against the Anti-Defamation League, the leading antisemitism watchdog, called it a “silencer of free speech” and promoter of Islamophobia, and pushed for other civil rights organizations to boycott it.
The authors warned that over time, fringe antisemitic beliefs could become increasingly mainstreamed if these organizations are not challenged.
A 75percent spike in antisemitic attacks in the US during and after the 2021 conflict in Gaza is evidence of the need to address Islamist antisemitism, and not only Jew-hatred on the far-right, said Barsky and Rosen. While that discourse exists in Europe, the successful rebranding of Islamist groups from extremists to champions of human rights has stymied debate over their activities against Jewish and pro-Israel organizations in the US.”
—-
You know, mainstreamed, like they’ve done on college campuses across the US.
This is not about “ inclusion “ as some suggest we must.
This is out and out sexual exposure and assault on women and is being promoted by the current WH administration no less! It is happening in schools and in public facilities. Outrageous!
“We were not forewarned beforehand that we would be sharing a locker room with Lia. We did not give our consent, they did not ask for our consent, but in that locker room we turned around and there’s a 6’4″ biological man dropping his pants and watching us undress, and we were exposed to male genitalia.”
Gaines added to the statement:
“That to me was worse than the competition piece. Not even probably a year, two years ago, this would have been considered some form of sexual assault, voyeurism. But now not even are they just allowing it to happen, it’s almost as if these large organizations are encouraging it to happen.”
I’m not surprised child labour claims with migrants. I suspect this has been going on for far longer than is acknowledged. The American gov’t is hollowed out for decades and incapable of running an administrative state and has out-sourced what should be their responsibilities.
Republican criticism is hypocritical as they are initially responsible for the hallowing out of the American government with Reagan which the Democrats continued under Clinton. In the end, the Labor Dept is left to assume corporations are complying with the law with minimal supervision.
In addition Republican state legislatures are currently repealing portions of the child labour laws to make it easier for 14 and 15 year olds to work different jobs at various hours. Iowa, Arkansas, etc are allowing children on assembly lines and working night shifts. This will make it far easier to exploit migrant children.
Not sure how Zephyr’s comments could be considered “terroristic”. To state voting for a bill will put blood on your hands is fairly strong for parliamentary language but its not a threat nor a personal accustion (both of which would need to be retracted) . I’m assuming the plural “you” was intended as in all Republican legislators. This is legit criticism – in their opinion the bill supported by Republican legislators would have fatal consequences. When did the Republican party become the party of snowflakes?
Banning a representative from speaking and sitting in the chamber for the rest of the session is quite extreme in a democracy. In a first past the post system, we elect a representative for our district. The Republicans have not only silenced Zephyr, they have silenced that district. They seemed to have learned from Tennessee and only suspended Zephyr which prevents Zephyr from being reelected and sent back by their district, further limiting the district’s democratic rights.
It’s fairly common for politicians to have cheat sheets at press conferences – usually just identification and pronunciation guides. The topic of the question is quite common also but not necessarily the exact question.
Anti-semitism has always been on the left and right in Europe. Traditionally in North America, Jews have been leaders on the left so it was fairly difficult for it to be anti-Semitic. This has changed in the last twenty years. In part because people in general don’t distinguish between Israeli gov’t policy and Jewish people. A lack of nuance in people’s thinking is always a problem. Hence when Muslim groups join the left to criticize Israel, the right will claim its anti-Semitic and at the same time some leftists will also not note the difference and will be anti-Semitic. Lack of nuance and slow reflective thinking.
I’m not sure what to think of trans athletes – most international athletic groups require trans to have started transitioning prior to reaching a certain level of puberty. This would eliminate Lia Thomas and probably most people. Interestingly I never hear discussion of female to male athletes which also have occurred. As for changerooms, North America needs to improve their layout and structure. In Europe, private stalls are available and washrooms are floor to ceiling partitioned with a proper door. Public toilets in North America are a privacy nightmare — every European I know comments on our toilet stalls.
Well it’s not just bathrooms and locker rooms here in the US. This entire “trans” coddling is complete lunacy.
Demi Minor is a transgender woman incarcerated in the New Jersey prison system. Because of an incident between her and inmates at the all-female Edna Mahan Correctional Facility which resulted in two pregnancies, she is at the all-male Garden State Youth Correctional Facility. She says, “I am approved for surgery, which has made my time in a male facility dangerous. So, I have been on suicide watch numerous times, I am losing weight, and truthfully, my mental health is a complete wreck.”
Females don’t impregnate females. That’s not how it works! One thing he has right is his last statement “my mental health is a complete wreck”…yes, yes it is.
“Made my time in a male facility dangerous”!!!!!
And I guess the females who were subjected to his sexuality were not in danger were they? What an idiot.
Just using the Democrat approved definition now HRW.
Dems said if you obstructed official proceedings, you’re a terrorist. The ugly dude pretending he’s a woman is obstructing official proceedings, making him a terrorist by the Democrat approved definition. They set the rules, now we’re playing by them.
Why do we even need a dept of labor anymore: Democrats are mostly schizophrenic now. Any ‘child’ who is old enough to transition without the express permission of its parents is old enough to work as they please. But since transitioning is mostly a permanent thing (as opposed to working), I would say any transitioning person [assuming such is being permitted by law] should be fully emancipated and not a ward or under the authority of anyone else. Work permits used to be accessible to young people at the age of 14 or 15 with parental consent I think. It’s not a bad idea to have parental consent if the person is not emancipated. But work is not evil. Corporate America is evil. And until people are willing to endure the discomfort to fight that evil it will continue.
“In addition Republican state legislatures are currently repealing portions of the child labour laws to make it easier for 14 and 15 year olds to work different jobs at various hours. I”
I eagerly await your proof of this, but I won’t hold my breath.
And don’t throw up some liberal interpretation of what lefties think it means, I want to see it in writing from the actual bills.
Debra – you’re right corporate America is evil and they want child labour – its the gov’ts duty to protect and prevent this type of exploitation. Medical consent is a different issue — and should vary depending on circumstance.
AJ – They were not obstructing the legislature. They were commenting on a bill during their allotted time. But perhaps you’re right, they were too ugly for the Republicans to tolerate.
NJ – Trans transitioning in prison has been happening for over a decade. Usually it’s the guards who get women pregnant – I wonder if this was used to cover up something. I’m curious and not a doctor but at a certain point in transition would it not be difficult to produce sperm? I googled the question apparently after a few months, sperm production should be permanently lost.
“The governor believes protecting kids is most important but doing so with arbitrary burdens on parents to get permission from the government for their child to get a job is burdensome and obsolete,” a spokesperson told the Democrat-Gazette. “All child labor laws will still apply, and we expect businesses to comply just as they are required to do now.”
Seems to me from the link provided that Huckabee is looking to remove one obstacle….that being government permission…no? All labor laws continue to apply…
Sorry AJ – didn’t read your demand for the actual bill. You can click through the links in the articles if you want to study the minutae. You accept as truth right wing tweets/blogs and FOX news yet want original documentation from me. Seems like different standards to me.
So all they did was remove the govt as middleman and allow the decision to fall to parents, where it should lie. The govt no longer profits is the only real difference, other than allowing teen servers to deliver drinks to their customers tables.. They actually increased the penalties for violating the laws too.
“BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
19
20 SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Title — Purpose — Legislative findings.
21 (a) This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Youth Hiring Act
22 of 2023″.
23 (b) The purpose of this act is to:
24 (1) Dispense with the state’s requirement that children under
25 sixteen (16) years of age have to obtain permission from the Division of
26 Labor in order to be employed;
27 (2) Restore decision-making to parents concerning their
28 children; and
29 (3) Streamline the hiring process for children under sixteen
30 (16) years of age.
31 (c) The General Assembly finds that:
32 (1) Children under sixteen (16) years of age should not be
33 required to obtain an employment certificate as a condition of employment;
34 and
35 (2) The division should not require that a child under sixteen
36 (16) years of age verify proof of their age through an employment certificate”
as a condition of employment.
2
3 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 11-6-109 is repealed.
4 11-6-109. Children under age 16 years — Employment certificate
5 required.
6 (a) No person, firm, or corporation shall employ or permit any child
7 under sixteen (16) years to work in or in connection with any establishment
8 or occupation unless the person, firm, or corporation employing the child
9 procures and keeps on file, accessible to the Division of Labor and the
10 Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, or local school officials, an
11 employment certificate as provided in this section.
12 (b)(1) The employment certificate shall be issued only by the Director
13 of the Division of Labor.
14 (2) Application for an employment certificate shall be made on a
15 form approved by the director and shall require submission of the following:
16 (A) Proof of age;
17 (B) A description of the work and work schedule; and
18 (C) Written consent of the parent or guardian.”
—-
And the next part of it, the one all your lib sites leave out….
“For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING CHILD LABOR; TO
10 INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF CIVIL PENALTIES FOR
11 VIOLATIONS; TO EXTEND THE TIME FOR ASSESSMENTS OF
12 CIVIL PENALTIES BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE DIVISION OF
13 LABOR; TO ESTABLISH CRIMINAL PENALTIES; TO ESTABLISH
14 PENALTIES FOR HINDERING INVESTIGATIONS; TO CLARIFY
15 THE LAW REGARDING WORKERS’ COMPENSATION RELATED TO
16 CHILD LABOR RESULTING FROM INITIATED ACT 4 OF 1948;
17 AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
18
19
20 Subtitle
21 TO AMEND THE CIVIL PENALTIES AND
22 ESTABLISH CRIMINAL PENALTIES RELATED TO
23 CHILD LABOR VIOLATIONS; AND TO CLARIFY
24 THE WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW RELATED TO
25 CHILD LABOR RESULTING FROM INITIATED ACT
26 4 OF 1948.
27
28
29 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
30
31 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103(a)(1), concerning the civil
32 penalty related to child labor violations, is amended to read as follows:
33 (a)(1) Any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association,
34 parent, guardian, or custodian who employs or permits or suffers any child to
35 be employed or to work in violation of this subchapter or §§ 11-12-101 — 11-
36 12-105, or any rules issued thereunder, shall be subject to a civil penalty
of not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) one hundred dollars ($100) and not
2 more than one five thousand dollars ($1,000) ($5,000) for each violation.
3
4 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103(f), concerning the length of time
5 for the assessment of a civil penalty related to child labor violations, is
6 amended to read as follows:
7 (f) Assessment of a civil penalty by the director shall be made no
8 later than two (2) three (3) years from the date of the occurrence of the
9 violation.
10
11 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103, concerning the penalties and
12 disposition of fines related to child labor violations, is amended to add
13 additional subsections to read as follows:
14 (h)(1) In addition to the civil penalties provided for in subsection
15 (a) of this section, an employer who knowingly violates this subchapter is,
16 upon conviction, guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.
17 (2) Upon a second or subsequent conviction, the employer is
18 guilty of a Class B misdemeanor.
19 (i)(1) In addition to the civil penalties provided for in subsection
20 (a) of this section and the criminal penalties provided for in subsection (h)
21 of this section, an employer who knowingly violates this subchapter and the
22 violation results in a serious physical injury to or death of a minor is,
23 upon conviction, guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
24 (2) Upon a second or subsequent conviction, the employer is
25 guilty of a Class C felony.
26 (j) An employer that willfully engages in any of the following actions
27 is in violation of this subchapter and subject to a civil penalty of not less
28 than one hundred dollars ($100) and not more than five thousand dollars
29 ($5,000) for each violation:
30 (1) Hinders or delays the director or his or her authorized
31 representative in the performance of his or her duties in the enforcement of
32 this subchapter; and
33 (2) Falsifies records related to child labor.
34 (k) As used in this section, “employer” means every person, firm,
35 corporation, partnership, stock association, agent, manager, representative,
36 foreman, or other person having control or custody of any employment, place
of employment, or of any employee.
2
3 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 11-9-504(a), concerning additional
4 compensation related to the injury to or death of an illegally employed minor
5 resulting from Initiated Act 4 of 1948, is amended to read as follows:
6 (a) Where an injury or death is sustained by a minor employed in
7 violation of federal or state statutes pertaining to minimum ages for
8 employment of minors, including without limitation § 11-6-101 et seq.,
9 compensation or death benefits provided for by this chapter shall be doubled.”
Some of this is strike throughed, which doesn’t copy and paste, so click the link to see the parts they removed.
The Independent and Vice are liberal newsites? I consider Vice a right win site and the Independent fairly neutral. Vox probably leans left. The Guardian definitely isleft but it has an excellent reputation even among righ wing readers.
NJ – I agree the Arkansas one is a bit weak. I imagine they want proof of age but couldn’t they just use Social Security numbers? The Iowa amendments are a problem – serving alcohol at 16? working in slaughter houses (I’m assuming this falls under assembly line work)? Working night shifts?
AJ – I may be getting old but I don’t see the video of the Montana legislator yesterday.
“Eleven Minutes of Media Falsehoods, Just On One Subject, Just On One Station
This special report hoped to make a list of all the editors’ notes and retractions that would be needed because of the #TwitterFiles. The problem turned out to be too big to count”
“The plan was a comprehensive count. With a sizable team of smart temporary hires, each looking into a different area of the #TwitterFiles, we thought counting all the mainstream news stories that would need retracting or correcting in light of information found in Twitter documents would make for an easy little sidebar, something simple for the public to digest.
The idea seemed easy. We would take a Twitter doc raising questions about a news story and write a suggested note for the story’s editor. In a lot of cases it wasn’t clear the piece was wrong exactly, but that new information might require a call or two to clear up a quote, add an update about a source, correct a fact or two, etc.
In the Files there were around a few dozen discrete incidents in which Twitter had concerns internally, and where the public might want to know what those were. The “Hamilton 68” fiasco, in which a think-tank called the Alliance for Securing Democracy purported to track 600 Twitter accounts linked to “Russian influence activities” but turned out to mostly be following ordinary Americans, Canadians, and British, was an example of a relatively easy fix for an editor. If you used the Hamilton “dashboard” of accounts as a source for a story about “Russian bots,” you probably needed either to retract altogether, or add a note saying the Russian-ness and bot-ness of those accounts has since been called into question.
In a few cases, news organizations have already added editor’s notes as threads were released — we should commend Mother Jones for adding such updates to many of their articles which referenced Hamilton — which gave cause for optimism. Maybe we could convince other reporters and editors to make the corrections ahead of time. How big of a job could that be?
Too big, as it turned out. Once humorously obsessive Matt Orfalea got going on the project, he quickly fell into a funk. He started just by looking just for video clips of broadcast or cable outlets referencing Hamilton 68, and immediately started racking up ridiculous numbers.
The first time he mentioned he was having a fit/time problem with the video, I was skeptical. Orf wasn’t counting print stories at first, and didn’t venture initially into other incidents beyond Ham68. It didn’t seem possible there could there be too many instances to compile on video. But there were. A large part of his logistical problem involved MSNBC, whose extravagant on-air warnings of Russian bots were fattening his compilation. “I thought, ‘If I could only do this without MSNBC, I could get this down to a manageable size,’” he said.
That led to an idea of making a separate video that only chronicled MSNBC making Hamilton-inspired references to Russian bots. “I was relieved,” he said. “I thought, ‘This way, I might be able to make a video about everyone else.’”
The rest of the team eventually had to scrap the idea of counting all the reporting problems suggested by the #TwitterFiles. The amazing, agonizing video above shows why. During the time period in question — mainly the period between 2016 and 2022 — false innuendo generated either by government agencies or so-called “anti-disinformation” sites constituted such a huge part of everyday media coverage that it was almost easier to identify the stories not generated by this subterranean information cartel.
This is part of the new media strategy in the Censorship-Industrial Complex age: in addition to downgrading and deamplifying dissent, fringe political ideas, controversial takes, offensive speech, and, yes, even true errors and foreign propaganda, the CIC softens up audiences to accept certain ideas through sheer, unrelenting repetition. You’re not hearing one or two stories about Russian bots or evil anti-vaxxers or even the treachery of Jill Stein and the Green Party, you’re hearing hundreds just on one channel, and God knows how many more in other outlets and via social media. One’s defenses wear down after a while, and there’s a natural instinct to grow afraid of suggesting the opposite around friends after a while.
What was true of the bot story then is still true of other topics now. How many Ukrainian flag emojis have you seen? How many stories blaming everyone but the obvious suspect for the Nord Stream blast? How relatively nervous are you to say something even mildly counter-narrative about those subjects? Contrary to what we might imagine, conviction can be worn down by volume, like shingles cracking under years of weather.
Lastly, it’s appropriate to use strong language to describe what MSNBC did with Ham68, because they have to have known for a while these reports were problematic. Even the release of the “new” Hamilton 2.0 in 2019, in which the think-tank said it would henceforth only cite sources that “we can directly attribute to the Russian, Chinese, or Iranian governments,” should have been a red flag for anyone who did stories based on their earlier dashboard.
But MSNBC apparently didn’t go back and examine prior claims then, and have repeatedly refused requests by me and others to do so since. They don’t care, and as Orf shows, they don’t care in high, high volume.”
“I’m not quite sure whether the bill is totally dead or not, because nothing is until the legislature adjourns. We do know that the GOP managed to get the language normalizing pedophilia stripped out of the bill in a vote yesterday.
Whether the language comes back or not, it is clear is that the pressure is on and the Chief Author of the bill is feeling the heat and the Republicans in the Minnesota House, who apparently hadn’t noted the change to the definition of “sexual orientation” to remove the exclusion for pedophilia, have grown a backbone.
First a reminder of what State Rep. Leigh Finke is trying to do. I described the bill in this post, so I will summarize the effort quickly.
The changes to the Minnesota Human Rights bill would redefine gender and strike a provision that specifically excluded attraction to minors as a sexual orientation, implicitly making pedophiles a protected class. Finke is claiming that was not the intent, but it is in both the bill and the bill description provided by Minnesota House Research.”
“The bill explicitly strikes the provision in current law that states: “Sexual orientation” does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by adults.” This, in plain language, means that if this amendment to the law passes then “Sexual orientation” may include a physical or sexual attachment to children by adults.
Pretty obvious, right? Not hard to see the intent, and the bill description by House Research makes it clear: “sections removed that allow for discrimination based on sexual orientation.” This means pedophilia will now be considered a sexual orientation that is protected.
Q.E.D.
Finke rightly points out that pedophilic acts would remain illegal, but that is not the point. Pedophiles themselves will be protected from discrimination.
The bill also repeals provisions that allow nonprofits to discriminate based on beliefs and prevent sex differentiation.
The following Minnesota statutes are being repealed:”
—
“Meaning that boys and girls clubs, 4H, and all sorts of other groups can longer keep individuals in protected classes out based on sex, gender, or sexual orientation. Meaning that pedophiles as a protected class would have a right to be Boy and Girl Scout leaders and counselors, for instance. I am not clear on what churches can or cannot due. First Amendment considerations would surely exclude them.
I hope.
In any case, it’s pretty clear what the law does and is intended to do. It removes a provision that excludes pedophilia from the definition of “sexual orientation.” Period. Suddenly pedophilia becomes a sexual orientation, as the bill description makes clear.”
We’ve never heard of “Alice Day” before. Turns out it’s a day for pedophiles to celebrate their pedophilia. The reference is to Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, who was allegedly a pedophile himself. pic.twitter.com/gZ3Pdvbmpe
YAP (Youth Attracted Person) or Minor Attracted Person is worst of woke garbage. These are pedophilloic criminals. They belong in jail. Zero tolerance for such heinous monsters.
Thanks Elon Musk for not tolerating such monster criminals on Twitter. https://t.co/duzHZYyh26
The blood on your hand comment was made during the debate on the trans medical ban bill on April 18. A group of Republicans demanded she be censured at that time. Two days later, the speaker of the house refused to let her speak against a bill the would define gender. She was prevented from speaking again on Friday. The protests occurred on Monday in reaction to the speaker refusing to let her speak. Given the sequence I’d say the Republicans obstructed her rights prior to the protests. The protests would not have occurred if her right to speak on a bill had not been impeded. If the protests had occurred without the provocation then yes she would have been guilty of obstructing the legislatoure but that’s not what happened. And the Republicans did not censure her for the protest rather the remarks of April 18 – so again it’s her right to speak that is being curtailed.
As I replied to NJ (I think), the Arkansas changes are relatively benign in comparison to Iowa’s changes. However, you see the Republicans are loosening child labour laws while child labor is on the increase.
There’s nothing in the Minneasota article to suggest normalizing pedophila. Removing it from the definition of sexual orientation does not change the definition nor normalize it. Pedophila is still illegal.
Agree that children selling alcohol is just nuts. Now back in “my day” a child cold walk over to the corner bar and have the proprietor fill their Dad’s beer jug and take it home to Dad!
As a 16year old working at the corner drug store I sold cigarettes to customers and I didn’t check for an ID. In Jr high we had a candy bar machine in the hallway right next to the cigarette machine!
I was required to have a “work permit” at the age of 16.
HRW, I do not understand all the legislative protocols, but they are very proscribed: you can only speak when recognized by someone with the authority to recognize you, and there are certain things you may not do or say. It’s not a democratic free-for-all. If you are not on the floor then you can say or do whatever you wish, but the legislative body demands that you abide by their protocols on the floor or be punished for it. In Tennessee, 3 members violated the protocols, depriving other members of their voice, and they were censured and 2 removed. If a district wants to be heard, they better send someone with enough sense to follow the rules. Those rules are meant to prevent your district from depriving mine of it’s voice, and from the public denigration of each district’s representative from the floor. Having a voice doesn’t mean you get to say anything and everything you want whenever you want. People need to grow up, and use their indoor voices on the floor. If they don’t like the rules, change them.
Cathrine, any comment on the Biden regime lying through their teeth about everything Ukraine/Russia? Or are you just going to keep attacking the whistleblower because your billionaire boss tells you to. https://t.co/SMEEWOxrav
A 21 year old kid exposes that the government is lying about the war and instead of the media covering the lies, they broadcast the lying government’s smears about the kid.
Sen. Monty Mason and state Del. Shelly Simonds can be heard ripping Republicans over S.B. 1515, a bill that required pornography websites to verify a user's age to be at least 18 before allowing access to its content.
VA State Sen. Monty Mason and state Del. Shelly Simonds can be heard ripping Republicans over S.B. 1515, a bill that required pornography websites to verify a users age to be at least 18 before allowing access to its content…DEMs are groomers
You mean to tell me Dems and the media lied yet again?
Oh say it isn’t so…..
Governor DeSantis debunks the blatant and shameless lies about "book banning" in Florida, while explaining how Florida has set the standard for factual education about the Holocaust. pic.twitter.com/RLnXS4D3hP
He's is so adept immediately understanding the false premise from which the media works in their attempt to make people think something that isn't true, and correcting it by moving to the correct premise and blowing them out of the water https://t.co/vjlsVAkU0r
He has 7 grandchildren. The one he isn't "crazy" about is as much his grandchild as the other and it's gross that he not only continues to deny her existence, but gets a pass on doing so. https://t.co/hMyYhti0TI
If you can’t get even the most basic facts right AP, perhaps you should learn to code instead, because you suck at this.
First, they misgendered her. Then they wouldn't let her speak.
A look at the conflict between a transgender Montana lawmaker and a group of Republicans over a bill that would ban gender-affirming medical care for children. https://t.co/YBYLZAdayM
Yesterday I posted the AP article about a Republican being expelled from the AZ legislature for bringing a witness who disparaged her colleagues. The AP made the offense the entire story. They frame stories about Democrats who break rules as martyrs. https://t.co/4Fb1JTtycT
This stuff drives polarization because it tells one side if you break the rules, you're a hero. The other side, if you break the rules, you're causing insurrection and disorder. It's creating bad incentives for politicians.
I get it if political partisans are okay with double standards and hypocrisy, that's a big part of politics! But why is the media acting like a political partisan?
Perhaps some up and coming journalist could look into it….
media layoffs in 2023 -VICE Media -Insider – Many local newsrooms across the U.S. -Buzzfeed (Buzzfeed News, Complex) – Paper Magazine -Vox Media – Disney (ABC, ESPN, National Geographic, FiveThirtyEight) – NPR – Fandom – Gannett – The Washington Post – NBC News – E.W. Scripps
“Lunacy ran rampant on the set of ABC’s The View on Thursday as the liberal cast was up in arms over the Republican-controlled House in Montana barring a trans lawmaker after he disrupted official proceedings. They falsely claimed there were no rules or “law” of decorum that the lawmaker needed to follow and moderator Whoopi Goldberg shouted about how “God was really clear” in the Bible that kids needed to have access to so-called “gender-affirming care.”
“Now, the House Republicans banned her from the chamber for the remainder of the legislative session claiming she broke the rules of decorum, but protesters are demanding they let her speak,” Goldberg sneered following a soundbite of trans Representative Zooey Zephyr claiming Republicans have “blood” on their hands.
Goldberg then teamed up with racist co-host Sunny Hostin and Joy Behar to falsely suggest there were no rules of decorum (arguing “there’s no law that says that”,) and that the Republicans were banning free speech:
GOLDBERG: What are the rules that say, “I don’t like what you’re saying, so I’m going to get a whole bunch of people to think like I think and we’re going to ban you from talking.” When did that become the law of the land?
SUNNY HOSTIN: Funny you should ask, because I looked it up, and there’s no law that says that.
GOLDBERG: No, no.
BEHAR: There is no law!
HOSTIN: There is no law that says that.”
—
“Back in reality, Chapter 2 of the Rules of the Montana House of Representatives covers decorum and the removal of representatives.
The unhinged screed eventually turned into a lecture where Goldberg was trying to tell Republicans about what it truly meant to be for parental rights. “You’re telling me that, as a parent, I’m not smart enough to decide if my child and I need to have gender-affirming [care],” she scoffed.
Things turned to the heretical as Goldberg decried those citing the Bible to oppose mutilating children with transition surgeries. “[T]hey keep saying it and I keep saying, what Bible are you reading? Cause God was really clear,” she shouted. She also got backup from Hostin, who was a self-described devout Catholic. She agreed God was “Very clear. Very clear.”
Faux-conservative Alyssa Farah Griffin was as useless as ever. “I don’t know personally where I am on minors getting – transitioning,” she admitted as she went on to claim Goldberg’s comments were “conservative.””
NJ – Back in my day, a child could walk to the corner store and buy cigarettes with a note but sometimes without. Dive bars would let anyone drink. Brooke Shield was a child star who posed naked. The 70s were insane compared to today. The moral panic around drag queens and groomers would have been more appropriate in the 70s. The all girl band, the Runaways, toured the US and Japan, all under 18 and no parents. We’re far more conservative today in some respects.
Debra – correct there are arcane rules and regulations one needs to follow in legislatures. When Zephyr was speaking on the 18th, it was her turn to speak when she said “blood on your hands” – one can say it was over the top but it wasn’t a threat or a personal insult. In the debate for the next two bills, Zephyr’s turn to speak was denied to her. This denial led to the protest on Monday.
My district sends to both the provincial and federal legislatures, representatives most people don’t want to hear and they are regularly criticized by the press and Conservative and Liberal parties. However, they represent the district very well. Why should our district be denied representation because who we choose makes people uncomfortable? Zephyr said things that made people uncomfortable and maybe her actual presence makes people uncomfortable but that’s not reason enough to censure her.
HRW, There are ways to disagree without being disagreeable. It’s civilization. We’re told here on the blog that this is what voters are longing for. Personally, I’m doubtful about that, but I can see the value of it in the legislative process where laws are created.
In the case of Zephyr, let’s be clear: this person is mentally ill and suffering from some kind of gender dysphoria. The legislative body has apparently been civil, seated, and allowed this person to speak. Zephyr was told he would have to apologize for certain remarks made about colleagues on the floor—not about the bill under discussion, about colleagues—or he would not be allowed to speak. Follow the house rules and your voice is heard. Don’t and it’s not. And if you don’t like the house rules, change them. But people should not be eager for mob change; that can cut both ways, and usually does.
Wandering Views 
Yep.
“House Whistleblower: US Gov’t is ‘Middleman’ in Child Trafficking Scheme”
But no mean tweets. That’s what’s important, right?
https://lidblog.com/house-whistleblower-us-govt-is-middleman-in-child-trafficking-scheme/
“If you ask folks on the left why they oppose building a serious wall on the southern border with Mexico, you will likely hear the same rehashed and redundant claim that such a barrier would somehow be “racist.” This was precisely the angle they took to attack Donald Trump during the 2016 election, and they haven’t yet come to grips with how detrimental it is to remain attached to this falsehood.
In reality, a leaky border isn’t just allowing undocumented migrants who may or may not find themselves in the naturalization process one day, but also all other people – many of whom have no attachment to the idea of law and order. This includes traffickers of drugs, guns, and even people.
In the coming days, one House committee will reveal bombshell revelations about the border situation…and the federal government’s role.
A House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday will feature the testimony from a whistleblower who will warn lawmakers that the U.S. has become the “middleman” in a multibillion-dollar migrant child trafficking operation at the border.
The hearing, “The Biden Border Crisis: Exploitation of Unaccompanied Alien Children,” will be held by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement and will examine the surge in unaccompanied children (UACs) at the southern border.
A House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday will feature the testimony from a whistleblower who will warn lawmakers that the U.S. has become the “middleman” in a multibillion dollar migrant child trafficking operation at the border.
The hearing, “The Biden Border Crisis: Exploitation of Unaccompanied Alien Children,” will be held by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement and will examine the surge in unaccompanied children (UACs) at the southern border.
According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics, the number of UACs who arrive at the border has swelled from 33,239 in fiscal year 2020 to more than 146,000 in fiscal year 2021 and 152,000 in fiscal year 2022. So far in fiscal year 2023, there have been more than 70,000 encounters of unaccompanied children.
Here is where things go awry:
When child migrants are encountered at the border, they are transferred into the custody of Health and Human Services (HHS) and then united with a sponsor – typically a parent or family member already in the U.S.
But the Biden administration has been rocked by a number of reports that officials have been unable to make contact with more than 85,000 child migrants; and more recently, administration officials reportedly ignored signs of “explosive” growth in child labor. A number have been forced into indentured servitude to pay back smugglers and have worked in dire conditions.
Some of the outcomes involved here are unforgivable.
The Wednesday hearing will hear from three witnesses: Tara Lee Rodas, a HHS whistleblower formerly with an inspector general’s office; Sheena Rodriguez, founder and president of Alliance for a Safe Texas; and Jessica Vaughn, director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies.
Rodas will warn of a problem that predates the administration but has increased significantly during the recent migrant crisis, according to a copy of her written testimony obtained by Fox News Digital.
“Today, children will work overnight shifts at slaughterhouses, factories, restaurants to pay their debts to smugglers and traffickers. Today, children will be sold for sex,” she will say. “Today, children will call a hotline to report they are being abused, neglected, and trafficked. For nearly a decade, unaccompanied children have been suffering in the shadows.””
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Ruled by clowns, and reported on by propagandists stooges.
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This is how you deal with terrorists.
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And this is how Democrats coddle them and mainstream their anti-Semitism….
“Islamist antisemitism in the US masked by alliance with far left – study
INSS report argues that rebranding of extremist groups as human rights organizations threatens to bring fringe ideas into the mainstream”
https://www.timesofisrael.com/islamist-antisemitism-in-the-us-masked-by-alliance-with-far-left-study/
“As antisemitic attacks continue to rise in the United States, a growing alliance with far-left organizations has shielded US Islamist groups from scrutiny of their antisemitic statements and ideas, a study by an Israeli think tank warned.
“US Islamist groups and leaders have increasingly sought common cause with progressive left-wing groups that promote minority rights and intersectionality among racial, ethnic, and religious minorities in their efforts to build coalitions around common interests,” charged Yehudit Barsky and Ehud Rosen, authors of the Institute for National Security Studies report “Islamist Antisemitism in the United States,” set to be published Tuesday.
The “red-green” coalition is based on a narrative that portrays the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as an anticolonial struggle, and US Muslims as victims of racism on par with other marginalized minorities in the US, said the INSS study.
The alliance also seeks to delegitimize Jewish communal organizations, according to Barsky and Rosen, by portraying them as part of a white power structure in the US that is ineligible for inclusion in progressive coalitions.
“Within these coalitions,” charged the study, “US Islamists have sought to boycott and delegitimize progressive Zionists and supporters of Israel, deeming them as oppressors and illegitimate participants.”
Barsky is a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, and Rosen is a team member of the INSS’s project on Contemporary Antisemitism in the United States.
The study is the latest installment in an ongoing INSS series on antisemitism in the US.
Leading Islamist organizations like American Muslims for Palestine and the Council on American Islamic Relations, the authors argued, seek to challenge the right of mainstream Jewish and pro-Israel organizations to define antisemitism and to call themselves civil rights organizations. A campaign against the Anti-Defamation League, the leading antisemitism watchdog, called it a “silencer of free speech” and promoter of Islamophobia, and pushed for other civil rights organizations to boycott it.
The authors warned that over time, fringe antisemitic beliefs could become increasingly mainstreamed if these organizations are not challenged.
A 75percent spike in antisemitic attacks in the US during and after the 2021 conflict in Gaza is evidence of the need to address Islamist antisemitism, and not only Jew-hatred on the far-right, said Barsky and Rosen. While that discourse exists in Europe, the successful rebranding of Islamist groups from extremists to champions of human rights has stymied debate over their activities against Jewish and pro-Israel organizations in the US.”
—-
You know, mainstreamed, like they’ve done on college campuses across the US.
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This is not about “ inclusion “ as some suggest we must.
This is out and out sexual exposure and assault on women and is being promoted by the current WH administration no less! It is happening in schools and in public facilities. Outrageous!
“We were not forewarned beforehand that we would be sharing a locker room with Lia. We did not give our consent, they did not ask for our consent, but in that locker room we turned around and there’s a 6’4″ biological man dropping his pants and watching us undress, and we were exposed to male genitalia.”
Gaines added to the statement:
“That to me was worse than the competition piece. Not even probably a year, two years ago, this would have been considered some form of sexual assault, voyeurism. But now not even are they just allowing it to happen, it’s almost as if these large organizations are encouraging it to happen.”
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I’m not surprised child labour claims with migrants. I suspect this has been going on for far longer than is acknowledged. The American gov’t is hollowed out for decades and incapable of running an administrative state and has out-sourced what should be their responsibilities.
Republican criticism is hypocritical as they are initially responsible for the hallowing out of the American government with Reagan which the Democrats continued under Clinton. In the end, the Labor Dept is left to assume corporations are complying with the law with minimal supervision.
In addition Republican state legislatures are currently repealing portions of the child labour laws to make it easier for 14 and 15 year olds to work different jobs at various hours. Iowa, Arkansas, etc are allowing children on assembly lines and working night shifts. This will make it far easier to exploit migrant children.
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Not sure how Zephyr’s comments could be considered “terroristic”. To state voting for a bill will put blood on your hands is fairly strong for parliamentary language but its not a threat nor a personal accustion (both of which would need to be retracted) . I’m assuming the plural “you” was intended as in all Republican legislators. This is legit criticism – in their opinion the bill supported by Republican legislators would have fatal consequences. When did the Republican party become the party of snowflakes?
Banning a representative from speaking and sitting in the chamber for the rest of the session is quite extreme in a democracy. In a first past the post system, we elect a representative for our district. The Republicans have not only silenced Zephyr, they have silenced that district. They seemed to have learned from Tennessee and only suspended Zephyr which prevents Zephyr from being reelected and sent back by their district, further limiting the district’s democratic rights.
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It’s fairly common for politicians to have cheat sheets at press conferences – usually just identification and pronunciation guides. The topic of the question is quite common also but not necessarily the exact question.
Anti-semitism has always been on the left and right in Europe. Traditionally in North America, Jews have been leaders on the left so it was fairly difficult for it to be anti-Semitic. This has changed in the last twenty years. In part because people in general don’t distinguish between Israeli gov’t policy and Jewish people. A lack of nuance in people’s thinking is always a problem. Hence when Muslim groups join the left to criticize Israel, the right will claim its anti-Semitic and at the same time some leftists will also not note the difference and will be anti-Semitic. Lack of nuance and slow reflective thinking.
I’m not sure what to think of trans athletes – most international athletic groups require trans to have started transitioning prior to reaching a certain level of puberty. This would eliminate Lia Thomas and probably most people. Interestingly I never hear discussion of female to male athletes which also have occurred. As for changerooms, North America needs to improve their layout and structure. In Europe, private stalls are available and washrooms are floor to ceiling partitioned with a proper door. Public toilets in North America are a privacy nightmare — every European I know comments on our toilet stalls.
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Well it’s not just bathrooms and locker rooms here in the US. This entire “trans” coddling is complete lunacy.
Demi Minor is a transgender woman incarcerated in the New Jersey prison system. Because of an incident between her and inmates at the all-female Edna Mahan Correctional Facility which resulted in two pregnancies, she is at the all-male Garden State Youth Correctional Facility. She says, “I am approved for surgery, which has made my time in a male facility dangerous. So, I have been on suicide watch numerous times, I am losing weight, and truthfully, my mental health is a complete wreck.”
Females don’t impregnate females. That’s not how it works! One thing he has right is his last statement “my mental health is a complete wreck”…yes, yes it is.
“Made my time in a male facility dangerous”!!!!!
And I guess the females who were subjected to his sexuality were not in danger were they? What an idiot.
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Just using the Democrat approved definition now HRW.
Dems said if you obstructed official proceedings, you’re a terrorist. The ugly dude pretending he’s a woman is obstructing official proceedings, making him a terrorist by the Democrat approved definition. They set the rules, now we’re playing by them.
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Why do we even need a dept of labor anymore: Democrats are mostly schizophrenic now. Any ‘child’ who is old enough to transition without the express permission of its parents is old enough to work as they please. But since transitioning is mostly a permanent thing (as opposed to working), I would say any transitioning person [assuming such is being permitted by law] should be fully emancipated and not a ward or under the authority of anyone else. Work permits used to be accessible to young people at the age of 14 or 15 with parental consent I think. It’s not a bad idea to have parental consent if the person is not emancipated. But work is not evil. Corporate America is evil. And until people are willing to endure the discomfort to fight that evil it will continue.
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“In addition Republican state legislatures are currently repealing portions of the child labour laws to make it easier for 14 and 15 year olds to work different jobs at various hours. I”
I eagerly await your proof of this, but I won’t hold my breath.
And don’t throw up some liberal interpretation of what lefties think it means, I want to see it in writing from the actual bills.
Go ahead, take your time, I’ll wait.
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https://www.vox.com/policy/2023/3/12/23631282/child-labor-laws-huckabee-sanders-republicans
https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7b4d9/rkansas-republicans-relaxing-child-labor-laws
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https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/iowa-republicans-child-labour-law-b2322286.html
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/11/us-child-labor-laws-violations
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Debra – you’re right corporate America is evil and they want child labour – its the gov’ts duty to protect and prevent this type of exploitation. Medical consent is a different issue — and should vary depending on circumstance.
AJ – They were not obstructing the legislature. They were commenting on a bill during their allotted time. But perhaps you’re right, they were too ugly for the Republicans to tolerate.
NJ – Trans transitioning in prison has been happening for over a decade. Usually it’s the guards who get women pregnant – I wonder if this was used to cover up something. I’m curious and not a doctor but at a certain point in transition would it not be difficult to produce sperm? I googled the question apparently after a few months, sperm production should be permanently lost.
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So you did exactly as I suspected you would, you gave numerous lib sites “interpretation” of the bill.
I will hold out to see the actual documents.
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“The governor believes protecting kids is most important but doing so with arbitrary burdens on parents to get permission from the government for their child to get a job is burdensome and obsolete,” a spokesperson told the Democrat-Gazette. “All child labor laws will still apply, and we expect businesses to comply just as they are required to do now.”
Seems to me from the link provided that Huckabee is looking to remove one obstacle….that being government permission…no? All labor laws continue to apply…
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I posted video yesterday of the incidents HRW.
It was not just the confused man pretending he is a woman. It’s supporters obstructed the proceedings, at it’s direction. See yesterday’s thread.
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Sorry AJ – didn’t read your demand for the actual bill. You can click through the links in the articles if you want to study the minutae. You accept as truth right wing tweets/blogs and FOX news yet want original documentation from me. Seems like different standards to me.
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Research isn’t hard.
So all they did was remove the govt as middleman and allow the decision to fall to parents, where it should lie. The govt no longer profits is the only real difference, other than allowing teen servers to deliver drinks to their customers tables.. They actually increased the penalties for violating the laws too.
Click to access FTPDocument
“BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
19
20 SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Title — Purpose — Legislative findings.
21 (a) This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Youth Hiring Act
22 of 2023″.
23 (b) The purpose of this act is to:
24 (1) Dispense with the state’s requirement that children under
25 sixteen (16) years of age have to obtain permission from the Division of
26 Labor in order to be employed;
27 (2) Restore decision-making to parents concerning their
28 children; and
29 (3) Streamline the hiring process for children under sixteen
30 (16) years of age.
31 (c) The General Assembly finds that:
32 (1) Children under sixteen (16) years of age should not be
33 required to obtain an employment certificate as a condition of employment;
34 and
35 (2) The division should not require that a child under sixteen
36 (16) years of age verify proof of their age through an employment certificate”
as a condition of employment.
2
3 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 11-6-109 is repealed.
4 11-6-109. Children under age 16 years — Employment certificate
5 required.
6 (a) No person, firm, or corporation shall employ or permit any child
7 under sixteen (16) years to work in or in connection with any establishment
8 or occupation unless the person, firm, or corporation employing the child
9 procures and keeps on file, accessible to the Division of Labor and the
10 Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, or local school officials, an
11 employment certificate as provided in this section.
12 (b)(1) The employment certificate shall be issued only by the Director
13 of the Division of Labor.
14 (2) Application for an employment certificate shall be made on a
15 form approved by the director and shall require submission of the following:
16 (A) Proof of age;
17 (B) A description of the work and work schedule; and
18 (C) Written consent of the parent or guardian.”
—-
And the next part of it, the one all your lib sites leave out….
Click to access FTPDocument
“For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING CHILD LABOR; TO
10 INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF CIVIL PENALTIES FOR
11 VIOLATIONS; TO EXTEND THE TIME FOR ASSESSMENTS OF
12 CIVIL PENALTIES BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE DIVISION OF
13 LABOR; TO ESTABLISH CRIMINAL PENALTIES; TO ESTABLISH
14 PENALTIES FOR HINDERING INVESTIGATIONS; TO CLARIFY
15 THE LAW REGARDING WORKERS’ COMPENSATION RELATED TO
16 CHILD LABOR RESULTING FROM INITIATED ACT 4 OF 1948;
17 AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
18
19
20 Subtitle
21 TO AMEND THE CIVIL PENALTIES AND
22 ESTABLISH CRIMINAL PENALTIES RELATED TO
23 CHILD LABOR VIOLATIONS; AND TO CLARIFY
24 THE WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW RELATED TO
25 CHILD LABOR RESULTING FROM INITIATED ACT
26 4 OF 1948.
27
28
29 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
30
31 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103(a)(1), concerning the civil
32 penalty related to child labor violations, is amended to read as follows:
33 (a)(1) Any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association,
34 parent, guardian, or custodian who employs or permits or suffers any child to
35 be employed or to work in violation of this subchapter or §§ 11-12-101 — 11-
36 12-105, or any rules issued thereunder, shall be subject to a civil penalty
of not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) one hundred dollars ($100) and not
2 more than one five thousand dollars ($1,000) ($5,000) for each violation.
3
4 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103(f), concerning the length of time
5 for the assessment of a civil penalty related to child labor violations, is
6 amended to read as follows:
7 (f) Assessment of a civil penalty by the director shall be made no
8 later than two (2) three (3) years from the date of the occurrence of the
9 violation.
10
11 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 11-6-103, concerning the penalties and
12 disposition of fines related to child labor violations, is amended to add
13 additional subsections to read as follows:
14 (h)(1) In addition to the civil penalties provided for in subsection
15 (a) of this section, an employer who knowingly violates this subchapter is,
16 upon conviction, guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.
17 (2) Upon a second or subsequent conviction, the employer is
18 guilty of a Class B misdemeanor.
19 (i)(1) In addition to the civil penalties provided for in subsection
20 (a) of this section and the criminal penalties provided for in subsection (h)
21 of this section, an employer who knowingly violates this subchapter and the
22 violation results in a serious physical injury to or death of a minor is,
23 upon conviction, guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
24 (2) Upon a second or subsequent conviction, the employer is
25 guilty of a Class C felony.
26 (j) An employer that willfully engages in any of the following actions
27 is in violation of this subchapter and subject to a civil penalty of not less
28 than one hundred dollars ($100) and not more than five thousand dollars
29 ($5,000) for each violation:
30 (1) Hinders or delays the director or his or her authorized
31 representative in the performance of his or her duties in the enforcement of
32 this subchapter; and
33 (2) Falsifies records related to child labor.
34 (k) As used in this section, “employer” means every person, firm,
35 corporation, partnership, stock association, agent, manager, representative,
36 foreman, or other person having control or custody of any employment, place
of employment, or of any employee.
2
3 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 11-9-504(a), concerning additional
4 compensation related to the injury to or death of an illegally employed minor
5 resulting from Initiated Act 4 of 1948, is amended to read as follows:
6 (a) Where an injury or death is sustained by a minor employed in
7 violation of federal or state statutes pertaining to minimum ages for
8 employment of minors, including without limitation § 11-6-101 et seq.,
9 compensation or death benefits provided for by this chapter shall be doubled.”
Some of this is strike throughed, which doesn’t copy and paste, so click the link to see the parts they removed.
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The Independent and Vice are liberal newsites? I consider Vice a right win site and the Independent fairly neutral. Vox probably leans left. The Guardian definitely isleft but it has an excellent reputation even among righ wing readers.
NJ – I agree the Arkansas one is a bit weak. I imagine they want proof of age but couldn’t they just use Social Security numbers? The Iowa amendments are a problem – serving alcohol at 16? working in slaughter houses (I’m assuming this falls under assembly line work)? Working night shifts?
AJ – I may be getting old but I don’t see the video of the Montana legislator yesterday.
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Trash is as trash does.
“Eleven Minutes of Media Falsehoods, Just On One Subject, Just On One Station
This special report hoped to make a list of all the editors’ notes and retractions that would be needed because of the #TwitterFiles. The problem turned out to be too big to count”
—-
https://www.racket.news/p/eleven-minutes-of-media-falsehoods
“The plan was a comprehensive count. With a sizable team of smart temporary hires, each looking into a different area of the #TwitterFiles, we thought counting all the mainstream news stories that would need retracting or correcting in light of information found in Twitter documents would make for an easy little sidebar, something simple for the public to digest.
The idea seemed easy. We would take a Twitter doc raising questions about a news story and write a suggested note for the story’s editor. In a lot of cases it wasn’t clear the piece was wrong exactly, but that new information might require a call or two to clear up a quote, add an update about a source, correct a fact or two, etc.
In the Files there were around a few dozen discrete incidents in which Twitter had concerns internally, and where the public might want to know what those were. The “Hamilton 68” fiasco, in which a think-tank called the Alliance for Securing Democracy purported to track 600 Twitter accounts linked to “Russian influence activities” but turned out to mostly be following ordinary Americans, Canadians, and British, was an example of a relatively easy fix for an editor. If you used the Hamilton “dashboard” of accounts as a source for a story about “Russian bots,” you probably needed either to retract altogether, or add a note saying the Russian-ness and bot-ness of those accounts has since been called into question.
In a few cases, news organizations have already added editor’s notes as threads were released — we should commend Mother Jones for adding such updates to many of their articles which referenced Hamilton — which gave cause for optimism. Maybe we could convince other reporters and editors to make the corrections ahead of time. How big of a job could that be?
Too big, as it turned out. Once humorously obsessive Matt Orfalea got going on the project, he quickly fell into a funk. He started just by looking just for video clips of broadcast or cable outlets referencing Hamilton 68, and immediately started racking up ridiculous numbers.
The first time he mentioned he was having a fit/time problem with the video, I was skeptical. Orf wasn’t counting print stories at first, and didn’t venture initially into other incidents beyond Ham68. It didn’t seem possible there could there be too many instances to compile on video. But there were. A large part of his logistical problem involved MSNBC, whose extravagant on-air warnings of Russian bots were fattening his compilation. “I thought, ‘If I could only do this without MSNBC, I could get this down to a manageable size,’” he said.
That led to an idea of making a separate video that only chronicled MSNBC making Hamilton-inspired references to Russian bots. “I was relieved,” he said. “I thought, ‘This way, I might be able to make a video about everyone else.’”
The rest of the team eventually had to scrap the idea of counting all the reporting problems suggested by the #TwitterFiles. The amazing, agonizing video above shows why. During the time period in question — mainly the period between 2016 and 2022 — false innuendo generated either by government agencies or so-called “anti-disinformation” sites constituted such a huge part of everyday media coverage that it was almost easier to identify the stories not generated by this subterranean information cartel.
This is part of the new media strategy in the Censorship-Industrial Complex age: in addition to downgrading and deamplifying dissent, fringe political ideas, controversial takes, offensive speech, and, yes, even true errors and foreign propaganda, the CIC softens up audiences to accept certain ideas through sheer, unrelenting repetition. You’re not hearing one or two stories about Russian bots or evil anti-vaxxers or even the treachery of Jill Stein and the Green Party, you’re hearing hundreds just on one channel, and God knows how many more in other outlets and via social media. One’s defenses wear down after a while, and there’s a natural instinct to grow afraid of suggesting the opposite around friends after a while.
What was true of the bot story then is still true of other topics now. How many Ukrainian flag emojis have you seen? How many stories blaming everyone but the obvious suspect for the Nord Stream blast? How relatively nervous are you to say something even mildly counter-narrative about those subjects? Contrary to what we might imagine, conviction can be worn down by volume, like shingles cracking under years of weather.
Lastly, it’s appropriate to use strong language to describe what MSNBC did with Ham68, because they have to have known for a while these reports were problematic. Even the release of the “new” Hamilton 2.0 in 2019, in which the think-tank said it would henceforth only cite sources that “we can directly attribute to the Russian, Chinese, or Iranian governments,” should have been a red flag for anyone who did stories based on their earlier dashboard.
But MSNBC apparently didn’t go back and examine prior claims then, and have repeatedly refused requests by me and others to do so since. They don’t care, and as Orf shows, they don’t care in high, high volume.”
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Good. Fight the pervs and their Democrat pals.
“Minnesota bill normalizing pedophilia dropped after backlash”
https://hotair.com/david-strom/2023/04/27/minnesota-bill-normalizing-pedophilia-dropped-after-backlash-n546776
“I’m not quite sure whether the bill is totally dead or not, because nothing is until the legislature adjourns. We do know that the GOP managed to get the language normalizing pedophilia stripped out of the bill in a vote yesterday.
Whether the language comes back or not, it is clear is that the pressure is on and the Chief Author of the bill is feeling the heat and the Republicans in the Minnesota House, who apparently hadn’t noted the change to the definition of “sexual orientation” to remove the exclusion for pedophilia, have grown a backbone.
First a reminder of what State Rep. Leigh Finke is trying to do. I described the bill in this post, so I will summarize the effort quickly.
The changes to the Minnesota Human Rights bill would redefine gender and strike a provision that specifically excluded attraction to minors as a sexual orientation, implicitly making pedophiles a protected class. Finke is claiming that was not the intent, but it is in both the bill and the bill description provided by Minnesota House Research.”
“The bill explicitly strikes the provision in current law that states: “Sexual orientation” does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by adults.” This, in plain language, means that if this amendment to the law passes then “Sexual orientation” may include a physical or sexual attachment to children by adults.
Pretty obvious, right? Not hard to see the intent, and the bill description by House Research makes it clear: “sections removed that allow for discrimination based on sexual orientation.” This means pedophilia will now be considered a sexual orientation that is protected.
Q.E.D.
Finke rightly points out that pedophilic acts would remain illegal, but that is not the point. Pedophiles themselves will be protected from discrimination.
The bill also repeals provisions that allow nonprofits to discriminate based on beliefs and prevent sex differentiation.
The following Minnesota statutes are being repealed:”
—
“Meaning that boys and girls clubs, 4H, and all sorts of other groups can longer keep individuals in protected classes out based on sex, gender, or sexual orientation. Meaning that pedophiles as a protected class would have a right to be Boy and Girl Scout leaders and counselors, for instance. I am not clear on what churches can or cannot due. First Amendment considerations would surely exclude them.
I hope.
In any case, it’s pretty clear what the law does and is intended to do. It removes a provision that excludes pedophilia from the definition of “sexual orientation.” Period. Suddenly pedophilia becomes a sexual orientation, as the bill description makes clear.”
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Again, good.
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So Snopes was garbage yet again.
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The Democrat base.
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The blood on your hand comment was made during the debate on the trans medical ban bill on April 18. A group of Republicans demanded she be censured at that time. Two days later, the speaker of the house refused to let her speak against a bill the would define gender. She was prevented from speaking again on Friday. The protests occurred on Monday in reaction to the speaker refusing to let her speak. Given the sequence I’d say the Republicans obstructed her rights prior to the protests. The protests would not have occurred if her right to speak on a bill had not been impeded. If the protests had occurred without the provocation then yes she would have been guilty of obstructing the legislatoure but that’s not what happened. And the Republicans did not censure her for the protest rather the remarks of April 18 – so again it’s her right to speak that is being curtailed.
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Apologies HRW,
It was the day before.
“the real Aj | April 25, 2023 at 11:19 am”
https://wanderingviews.com/2023/04/25/news-politics-4-25-23/#comment-697889
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As I replied to NJ (I think), the Arkansas changes are relatively benign in comparison to Iowa’s changes. However, you see the Republicans are loosening child labour laws while child labor is on the increase.
There’s nothing in the Minneasota article to suggest normalizing pedophila. Removing it from the definition of sexual orientation does not change the definition nor normalize it. Pedophila is still illegal.
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Agree that children selling alcohol is just nuts. Now back in “my day” a child cold walk over to the corner bar and have the proprietor fill their Dad’s beer jug and take it home to Dad!
As a 16year old working at the corner drug store I sold cigarettes to customers and I didn’t check for an ID. In Jr high we had a candy bar machine in the hallway right next to the cigarette machine!
I was required to have a “work permit” at the age of 16.
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HRW, I do not understand all the legislative protocols, but they are very proscribed: you can only speak when recognized by someone with the authority to recognize you, and there are certain things you may not do or say. It’s not a democratic free-for-all. If you are not on the floor then you can say or do whatever you wish, but the legislative body demands that you abide by their protocols on the floor or be punished for it. In Tennessee, 3 members violated the protocols, depriving other members of their voice, and they were censured and 2 removed. If a district wants to be heard, they better send someone with enough sense to follow the rules. Those rules are meant to prevent your district from depriving mine of it’s voice, and from the public denigration of each district’s representative from the floor. Having a voice doesn’t mean you get to say anything and everything you want whenever you want. People need to grow up, and use their indoor voices on the floor. If they don’t like the rules, change them.
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Tucker did make a brief statement from his home studio and I didn’t see it posted here.
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Elections have consequences.
Enjoy!
“U.S. Economic Growth Slows To 1.1% In Q1 2023 Amid Sky-High Bidenflation…”
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C’mon Catherine. I expect better from you.
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Pro-tip for the press.
If it has an orange tip on the barrel, it’s a toy.
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Some people?
No. Democrats. Get it right.
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The groomer party.
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You mean to tell me Dems and the media lied yet again?
Oh say it isn’t so…..
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Useless.
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I’m sure they’d do the same for Trump, right?
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🙂
Thanks for that Debra.
And that’s more viewers than CNN and MSNBC will get in primetime all week.
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It’s a dude.
If you can’t get even the most basic facts right AP, perhaps you should learn to code instead, because you suck at this.
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Ya think?
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Perhaps some up and coming journalist could look into it….
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Whoopi should right a book.
Call it… Theology for Clueless Idiots.
“Whoopi: ‘God Was Really Clear’ Transitioning Kids Is OKAY With Him”
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/nicholas-fondacaro/2023/04/27/whoopi-god-was-really-clear-transitioning-kids-okay-him
“Lunacy ran rampant on the set of ABC’s The View on Thursday as the liberal cast was up in arms over the Republican-controlled House in Montana barring a trans lawmaker after he disrupted official proceedings. They falsely claimed there were no rules or “law” of decorum that the lawmaker needed to follow and moderator Whoopi Goldberg shouted about how “God was really clear” in the Bible that kids needed to have access to so-called “gender-affirming care.”
“Now, the House Republicans banned her from the chamber for the remainder of the legislative session claiming she broke the rules of decorum, but protesters are demanding they let her speak,” Goldberg sneered following a soundbite of trans Representative Zooey Zephyr claiming Republicans have “blood” on their hands.
Goldberg then teamed up with racist co-host Sunny Hostin and Joy Behar to falsely suggest there were no rules of decorum (arguing “there’s no law that says that”,) and that the Republicans were banning free speech:
GOLDBERG: What are the rules that say, “I don’t like what you’re saying, so I’m going to get a whole bunch of people to think like I think and we’re going to ban you from talking.” When did that become the law of the land?
SUNNY HOSTIN: Funny you should ask, because I looked it up, and there’s no law that says that.
GOLDBERG: No, no.
BEHAR: There is no law!
HOSTIN: There is no law that says that.”
—
“Back in reality, Chapter 2 of the Rules of the Montana House of Representatives covers decorum and the removal of representatives.
The unhinged screed eventually turned into a lecture where Goldberg was trying to tell Republicans about what it truly meant to be for parental rights. “You’re telling me that, as a parent, I’m not smart enough to decide if my child and I need to have gender-affirming [care],” she scoffed.
Things turned to the heretical as Goldberg decried those citing the Bible to oppose mutilating children with transition surgeries. “[T]hey keep saying it and I keep saying, what Bible are you reading? Cause God was really clear,” she shouted. She also got backup from Hostin, who was a self-described devout Catholic. She agreed God was “Very clear. Very clear.”
Faux-conservative Alyssa Farah Griffin was as useless as ever. “I don’t know personally where I am on minors getting – transitioning,” she admitted as she went on to claim Goldberg’s comments were “conservative.””
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NJ – Back in my day, a child could walk to the corner store and buy cigarettes with a note but sometimes without. Dive bars would let anyone drink. Brooke Shield was a child star who posed naked. The 70s were insane compared to today. The moral panic around drag queens and groomers would have been more appropriate in the 70s. The all girl band, the Runaways, toured the US and Japan, all under 18 and no parents. We’re far more conservative today in some respects.
Debra – correct there are arcane rules and regulations one needs to follow in legislatures. When Zephyr was speaking on the 18th, it was her turn to speak when she said “blood on your hands” – one can say it was over the top but it wasn’t a threat or a personal insult. In the debate for the next two bills, Zephyr’s turn to speak was denied to her. This denial led to the protest on Monday.
My district sends to both the provincial and federal legislatures, representatives most people don’t want to hear and they are regularly criticized by the press and Conservative and Liberal parties. However, they represent the district very well. Why should our district be denied representation because who we choose makes people uncomfortable? Zephyr said things that made people uncomfortable and maybe her actual presence makes people uncomfortable but that’s not reason enough to censure her.
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Write…. dang spell check….
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HRW, There are ways to disagree without being disagreeable. It’s civilization. We’re told here on the blog that this is what voters are longing for. Personally, I’m doubtful about that, but I can see the value of it in the legislative process where laws are created.
In the case of Zephyr, let’s be clear: this person is mentally ill and suffering from some kind of gender dysphoria. The legislative body has apparently been civil, seated, and allowed this person to speak. Zephyr was told he would have to apologize for certain remarks made about colleagues on the floor—not about the bill under discussion, about colleagues—or he would not be allowed to speak. Follow the house rules and your voice is heard. Don’t and it’s not. And if you don’t like the house rules, change them. But people should not be eager for mob change; that can cut both ways, and usually does.
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