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Right now, if you want to read the published results of the biomedical research that your own tax dollars paid for, all you have to do is visit the digital archive of the National Institutes of Health. There you'll find thousands of articles on the latest discoveries in medicine and disease, all free of charge.
A new bill in Congress wants to make you pay for that, thank you very much. The Research Works Act would prohibit the NIH from requiring scientists to submit their articles to the online database. Taxpayers would have to shell out $15 to $35 to get behind a publisher's paid site to read the full research results. A Scientific American blog said it amounts to paying twice.
Two members of Congress , Reps. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. , introduced the bill. Rebecca Rosen ofThe Atlantic finds it curious that Issa, a well-known champion of the open Internet whose own website displays the words "keep the web #OPEN," would back a bill that appears to be the polar opposite of open access.
As Michael Eisen, a University of California, Berkeley, biologist and open access supporter, notes, Maloney's support seems no less mystifying since she represents "a liberal Democratic district in New York City that is home to many research institutions."
Both Issa and Maloney have received campaign contributions from the Dutch company Elsevier, which calls itself the world's leading publisher of scientific and medical information. According to MapLight, a website that tracks political cash, Elsevier and its senior executives last year made 31 contributions to House members totaling $29,500. Twelve contributions totaling $8,500 went to Maloney; Issa received two for a total of $2,000.
This isn't the first effort by publishers to push Congress to roll back the NIH's public access policy, which was enacted in 2008 and applauded by doctors, patients, librarians, teachers and students. Under the policy, all research funded by the NIH was required to be made freely available to the public one year after publication on PubMed Central. (The NIH also runs PubMed, a biomedical research database that includes articles that aren't federally funded and cost money to access.)
In 2009, as Eisen notes, the Association of American Publishers backed the Fair Copyright in Research Works Act. That bill never left committee, but this new bill is essentially a shorter version of the same thing (and was similarly praised by the AAP for forbidding "federal agencies from unauthorized free public dissemination of journal articles").
Two arguments in favor of the bill crop up regularly:
In the recent commotion over the bill (here's a roundup of recent posts), the academic community has replied to both of these claims.
In response to the added value argument, Kevin Smith, scholarly communications officer at Duke University, argues that publishers don't actually produce or add much themselves. The work comes from academics and from the peer reviewers who volunteer their time to read and critique the work of their fellow academics. According to Eisen, although publishers might contribute a little something to the peer-review process (organization, supervision, etc.), this pales in comparison to the work done for free.
In response to the jobs and industry argument, Heather Morrison, a doctoral candidate at the Simon Fraser University School of Communication in Vancouver, B.C., points out that the top scientific, technical and medical publishers (Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, Informa) have seen profit margins of 30 percent to 35 percent in the last year. Elsevier, part of a global multibillion-dollar information conglomerate with offices in New York City, publishes about 1,800 journals and last year made a profit of $1.1 billion.
The Economist makes the same point: The industry seems to be doing just fine. Furthermore, there is evidence that more jobs would come from open policies than from closed ones, says Peter Suber, an open access advocate at Harvard University.
In his response to a recent White House request for information on public access in research, Harvard Provost Alan Garber calls the current situation an "access crisis." He argues that public access is crucial to growing businesses, which need access to cutting-edge research to stimulate innovation, develop new products, improve existing ones, and create jobs.
"If the NIH policy is flawed," writes Garber, "it is for allowing needlessly long delays before the public gains access to this body of publicly funded research, and for allowing needless restrictions on the public use and reuse of this research."
###Fallout from Social Security Party Increases, Agency Offers Statement
(KNM)---Sharp criticism is growing over revelations that the Social Security Administration (SSA) spent $700,000 for a retreat at a four-star luxury hotel in Arizona because staffers were "stressed." Congress, receiving angry feedback over the event, has asked for an inquiry about the situation and the president has remained silent. The Congressional Committe on Ways and Means had demanded the SSA deliver all documents related to the retreat at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel and Spa. It has been revealed that the SSA (taxpayers) spent nearly $68,000 to use the resort's audio-visual equipment at the event which was officially described at the hotel as the SSA's "2009 Management Tango." The SSA insists a casino trip was not funded in any way by taxpayers.
The offical SSA comment given to the press was as cold and detached as the event in these dark financial times. The SSA justifies the spending by claiming the event was for training purposes and in effect said it saved money by going for the lowest bidder. The SSA's statement follows: "This was a training conference. The location was selected through the government's competitive bidding process. The facility that was selected was the lowest bidder, and we paid well-below the prescribed government rate."
Social Security Regional Commissioner Peter Spencer told ABC News that staff members needed to learn how to reduce stress because of a growing number of death threats made against them. The United States Senate Finance committee also requested the Inspector General audit the entire contracting process used by Social Security to select the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa for their conference. "It's unsurprising that a massive government agency would fall victim to an 'entitlement mentality,'" Arizona Congressman Trent Frank said. "This is clearly a case of sheltered bureaucrats forgetting that they work for the American people and deciding that the taxpayersmoney is their own personal bankroll."
It's especially frustrating when you have people who truly are disabled who will wait years to get their case heard and years more just to get a little help," Congressman Kevin Brady of Texas said. "When they see the government and the agency wasting their money like this, I know it makes them angry and I know it really frustrates them."
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Social Security Spends $700k for Arizona Party While Citizens Struggle
(KNM)---The national unemployment rate is nearing 10 percent. This week, a report came out that estimates homeless numbers will increase and could include one million American children without a roof over their heads. Makeshift villages are popping up in parks, under bridges, on camping grounds and along highways. Foreclosure rates are increasing. Wages are dropping. Millions of Americans have no health insurance and many are fighting serious illness or diseases with little or no medical assistance. Small businesses cannot get any credit or federal assistance to survive and towns as well as cities across America are laying off cops.
But the Social Security Administration (SSA) spent $700,000 for a party and retreat in Phoenix because its employees were "stressed".
If citizens needed another example of how detached, arrogant and elitist civil servants have become and how wasteful and dis-connected the government on all levels is, the Phoenix party is a prime example of government employees living off the public while the public is suffering one of the worst economic environments since the Great Depression. Criticism of the event is increasing as is calls for President Obama to take action against the SSA for such lavish spending as the president himself declared on national television during Major League Baseball's All Star Game "we're out of money".
Critics contend the lack of action by the White House would not only be hypocritical but damage the president since he was very aggressive in the first months of his tenure attacking the corporate world for executive salaries, bonuses, office spending and retreats or meetings at four-star luxury destinations. The president harshly attacked a corporate retreat that had been scheduled to take place in Las Vegas earlier in the year as an example of how Corporate America was "out of touch" with the reality of the country's situations. Yet, the president has been silent about the SSA's expensive party----at a four star luxury hotel. An ABC affiliate in Arizona broke the story and sent a news crew to the hotel where they found SSA employees lounging at the pool, going to a nearby casino to do some gambling and dancing in a hotel conference room. SSA administrators claim the retreat was much needed because staffers were under intense pressure from dealing with citizens.
KingNewsMedia called several SSA offices for a response and only one official chose to offer a statement although she asked not to be identified. "I can see how people would be angry over this," she said. "But there's a lot more to the story. Many believed they really did not have a choice and had to go to keep in good graces with their immediate bosses. It was kind of a ratpack mentality. 'Let's all go so no one stands out' and nobody brought up the costs because nobody wanted to stir the water." When asked about the SSA's official reasoning that the retreat was needed to relieve stress, the employee replied, "Well that is true. It's not easy working here. There are a lot of angry people out there who cannot get the benefits they want and we deal with that everyday." When reminded millions of Americans are 'stressed' because they cannot afford food, rent or pay bills, the SSA official replied, "I guess so but on the other hand the SSA couldn't do the retreat if they didn't have the budget for it so why should we be made to feel ashamed?" When reminded the SSA is heading toward bankruptcy and is severely inefficient in its management and services, the official laughed and said, "I just work here."
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Disgraceful CNN 'Reporter' Gets The Ax At Network
(KNM)---Susan Roesgen will not be returning to CNN after news leaked that the network has decided to not renew her contract. Roesgen gained infamny and a national movement of critics when she had a meltdown on live television while covering a Chicago 'Tea Party' and began berating, arguing, judging and mocking protestors. Roesgen's clear political prejudice was apparent when she began yelling at different people she was interviewing. One protestor she picked to interview was a man who was holding his baby who attempted to tell Roesgen he believed President Obama was a liar when he compared himself to President Lincoln and was a supporter of lower taxes. As the father tried to explain he believed Obama was excessively raising the cost of government and the tax burden on citizens, Roesgen kept interrupting him and sounded more like a publicity agent for the White House by yelling out stats that supported the president's 'stimulus' plan. As the 'interview' became more hostile due to Roesgen, the father's baby began to cry.
Roesgen also berated another person she selected to 'interview' who was carrying placards that proclaimed the president was a fascist and held a picture that compared Obama to Adolf Hitler. The CNN employee immediately set the tone of confrontation by speaking to the man as if he was a child and asked him if he realized how "offensive" it was for him to call the president a fascist. When the man told Roesgen that is what he believed and that he felt the "real pirates" were in the White House and Congress (as opposed to off the coast of Africa), the CNN employee dismissed him on-air and walked away in contempt. Roesgen's antics also included a frustrated, biased and un-hinged tirade on live television that accused the protests of being "anti-CNN" and run by competitor Fox News which she called "right wing" and "conservative". This was in response to growing tension in the crowd that began shouting CNN was politically biased.
CNN put Roesgen on hiatus after the incident which caused a national stir and was used as an example of how politically bigoted and intolerant the nation's media has become to non-liberals and non-Democrats. An official comment by CNN after the fallout praised Roesgen's performance and said "she called it like she saw it." She returned to cover the death of Michael Jackson and her dismissal was somewhat of a surprise but insiders say CNN management also had issues with Roesgen and could not agree on several things moving forward.
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CIA Now Heavily Involved In Financial Intelligence Gathering
(KNM)---One of the fastest growing segments of the Central Intelligence Agency is surely a sign of the times: the American spy agency is quickly growing its financial spying and intelligence gathering apparatus around the world and delivering daily classified reports to the White House on all things concerning the economic climate and its affects on populations around the globe. The move is seen by observers as a clear signal that the White House is clearly concerned that the global deep recession has all the makings of creating waves of global unrest and possible revolutions as the masses of financially strapped people become desperate for change and indirectly harm markets, including America's from gaining any stability for recovery.
Recent tensions and deadly riots in the streets of Iran, Honduras, and China can all be traced serious economic distress among the population that has morphed into movements against the governments. The CIA's role in financial spying had been the classic scenario of monitoring the economies of nations and the spending of their governments but now the agency has dug deeper into observing and reporting on a broader scale of financial metrics, events and forecasts to determine how each nation may be equipped to handle or not manage the situation and how failure could affect the United States.
In addition, the CIA is also following much more closely today the emergence of sub-economies in these tough financial times in relation to terrorist financing, gang-related drug trafficking and illegal financial moves of hidden money, assets and property among nations, groups and individuals. The CIA has been particularly concerned over the financial arms of terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah and Al Qaeda who are becoming more sophisticated in revenue-generating ventures including legitimate investments along with the sale and purchase of arms and drugs. North Korea, Iran, Syria and other nations are also on a hot list of countries under intense scrutiny since Washington believes these nations support terrorist activity through, in part, financial backing.
In the United States, the CIA has been open--to a degree-- about its interest in growing its financial intelligence gathering ability via a heavy recruting effort on college campuses and by targeting the thousands of Wall Street and financial services professionals that have lost jobs due to the deep downturn in the economy.
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Libertarian Party Calls for "Real Stimulus", Knocks 'Cap and Trade' Bill
(KNM)---The Libertarian Party, the third largest political party in the United States, criticized Democrat and Republican leaders in Congress for suggesting that rising unemployment can be solved by passing another stimulus government expansion, or by spending current appropriations more quickly. Libertarian leaders called on Congress and the White House to pass a combination of tax cuts and regulatory relief for businesses that they believe would spark economic growth more quickly than the bills that have already passed or are being debated in Washington.
"While Democrats are proposing another several hundred billion dollars on dog parks and ACORN recruiting and Republicans are complaining Obama isn't spending stimulus money fast enough, Libertarians are focused on growth policies that create the jobs Americans need," said Donny Ferguson, Libertarian National Committee Communications Director. "We can start by preserving the 2001 and 2003 pro-growth tax cuts, scale back taxes on investments so job creators can expand their businesses, reduce taxes on individuals so Americans will have more money to save and meet basic needs and reduce unnecessary and unneeded federal regulations that are stopping employers from creating jobs," Ferguson added.
The spokeman pointed out that when Congress passed President Barack Obama's stimulus package the White House said the bill would keep unemployment below eight percent. It instead skyrocketed to a 26-year high of 9.5 percent, which Republicans blame on not spending the money fast enough and Democrats claim is reason to pass another similar bill. In addition, Congressman Bob Barr, the 2008 Libertarian presidential nominee, called President Obama's 'Cap and Trade' Bill "among the most complex and convoluted pieces of legislation ever devised, making old, Soviet-style government edicts appear streamlined by comparison." Barr compared Obama's energy bill to former president Jimmy Carter who during the energy crisis of the late 1970's received heavy criticism for addressing citizens in front of a fireplace and wearing a heavy sweater lectured them to turn down the thermostat to save money.
"Where Carter, a generation ago, was content to turn down the thermostat and lecture the country while wearing a cardigan sweater in front of a warmly glowing fireplace, Obama uses 21st-century communications tools and offers to change not just America's energy system, but the entire world's - with taxpayer dollars by the trillions," Barr said. The presidential candidate added, "the cost is impossible to calculate, except to know it will be in the trillions of dollars. For a plan based on bad science and proposing to implement a model that's already failed in Europe, that's a price no responsible American ought to accept.
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It's Not Just The Media: Few Scientists Say They Are Republicans
(KNM)---If the political bias and closed-minded behavior of the heavily liberal Democrat media is bad, it may actually pale to the overwhelmingly one-sided political view of scientists a that new poll has revealed. The Pew Research Center reports that only six percent of its respondants replied that as scientists, they affiliated themselves with the Republican Party. By contrast, 55 percent said they considered themselves Democrat while the remainder were non-affiliated or third party supporters. Undoubtedly, the poll showed that scientists railed against the Republican Party for its support of religion and its stands against several medical and scientific experiments including cloning and stem-cell research.
In addition, the Democrat Party is a supporter of the theory of global warming and "green energy"--two of the most profitable and advantageous developments for the scientific field that will secure billions in funding, profit and work--while the Republicans remain skeptical or lukewarm to both things. "I am not sure if this poll would surprise many Americans," KNM contributor Walter Krull said. "I would think most Americans would actually be disappointed and many even troubled by the fact that scientists would be 'political' in any form since we've grown up with the belief science was apolitical and research should be science-focused and not politically motivated." Krull added, "But let's be clear that the poll reveals the fact that in America science has become nothing more than yet another for-profit industry that has lobbyists and political loyalties. Why would scientists support a political party that questions it and knocks down the sometimes hysteric screams about global warming and the call for 'going green' when it will cost Americans so much money out of their pockets but provide tons of money to science."
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Obama's Hospital of Birth: Mystery?
(KNM)---Increasing scrutiny over President Barack Obama's lack of paperwork verifying his legal citizen status is taking another twist as questions are rising over the fact no one can say with any finality just exactly what hospital the president was born it. King New Media has counted at least three hospitals that have claimed they have records on file 'proving' Obama was born in their particular institution. Now, an increasing number of Websites, including the popular myth-breaking Snopes.com, are reporting that clear inconsistencies exist over just where Obama was born.
The president, on official White House stationary, proclaimed he was born in Hawaii's Kapiolani Medical Center in Honolulu in a congratulatory message he sent the hospital not long after his inauguration. The hospital immediately posted the letter from the new president on its Website but raised suspicions when it recently took the letter from Obama off its site after news leaked that the heat is intensyfying on the White House to prove Obama's legal citizen status. The popular Website Snopes.com challenged the president's claim of being born in Kapiolani when it posted an entry reporting that the president was born in Queens Medical Center in Honolulu and had documents to show it. The claim by Snopes has been reported as matter-of-fact by mainstream news organizations during the presidential campaign although it seems no major news outlet ever challenged and received an answer from then candidate Obama over the conflicting birth hospital information that was circulating.
Adding another layer to the controversy is serious allegations by residents, public officials and religious leaders in Kenya that the president was born in Mombasa but not in an hospital. Some of the most curious claims about Obama being born in Kenya come from his relatives and most notably his grandmother, Sarah, who is quoted in several interviews that took place in the Kenyan town of Alego-Kogello during the campaign that she "personally witnessed" the birth of Obama. A growing number of lawsuits against the president to prove his legal status via official documents that are routinely processed during a candidate's filing to run for office include suits that claim that if Obama was born in Kenya, his mother was too young to legally 'claim' him as an United States citizen abroad. There are also suits which claim the Obama is not only ineligible to be president but that he should be prosecuted under Federal law for violating several laws when he ran for Senator as well.
President Obama has continually dismissed all claims against his citizen status as either hateful propaganda, political gamemanship or smear-mongering by opponents. The White House has also continually refused to provide clear answers and documents in any detail against the charges but has labeled the lawsuits as "garbage" and has told media all legal requirements have been met by the president and that the lawsuits are a non-issue. In an example of political bias, Senator John McCain also came under scrutiny for his legal status since he was born in the Panama Canal Zone and an actual Congressional hearing was conducted during the campaign which ended in dismissing charges against McCain but no such Congressional hearing was ever held to tackle the question of Obama's status.
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COURT TO HEAR SUIT AGAINST OBAMA'S LACK OF CITIZENSHIP PROOF
(KNM)---Dozens of legal challenges have been made against President Barack Obama and his apparent lack of paperwork officially recognizing him as a natural born citizen of the United States--a requirement to hold office. Now, a California lawyer who has persisted for months in a legal attempt to require the president to hand over official documents that would prove he was born in the country and met the legal requirements to be president will be heard in a state court on July 13th.
Orly Taitz's class-action suit against the president will be heard in court but the Taitz was instructed to officially serve papers to the president notifying him of the matter--something Taitz has said has been impossible to do. If the complaint against the president is found valid, Taitz has declared she will immediately set legal papers in motion demanding the immediate handover from the president of paperwork that would prove he was legally eligible to hold office.
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter told Taitz that he would grant a hearing but said, "Plaintiffs are directed to make every effort possible to ensure that all remaining defendants are aware of the hearing and provide documentation that the individual receiving service is authorized to accept on defendants' behalf."
The lawyer has publicly stated that she represents a group of citizens who are deeply upset that the president has never turned over simple documentation to end all doubt he is indeed a natural born citizen of the country and took the oath without ever addressing the issue. Among the plaintiffs are U.S. Ambassador Alan Keyes, a former ambassador for the United States who also ran for election in the last presidential campaign. Keyes, along with third party candidate Bob Barr had frequently complained they were omitted from media debates and held to legal standards the major party candidates did not have to meet---including even proving one's eligibility to run for president as in Obama's case. There had also been legal challenges raised by a different group over Senator John McCain's eligibility since he was officially born in the Panama Canal Zone which many believed was not a state or territory and therefore made the Arizona Senator ineligible. That challenge was dismissed when it declared McCain was born in a U.S. "territory" or "possession" since it was considered American property as the canal was being built and managed until President Jimmy Carter officially "gave back" the canal zone to Panama in the late 1970's. Democrats in Congress actually held hearings over whether Senator McCain was eligible to be president.
Taitz said Obama and his staff ignored or dismissed her suit when they received it before Inauguration Day. But, by doing so, Taitz says Obama was then legally "in default" which bolstered her legal right to request official docuements and have her arguement heard in court. The legal paperwork for the suit names the president, "defendant 'Barack H Obama also known as Barack Hussein Obama II also known as Barack H Obama II also known as Barry Obama also known as Barry Soetoro.'"
Technicalities abound in this matter and Taitz claims there had been confusion over obscure laws that actually limit how a private citizen can sue a politician in office and how they must do it. Taitz says that the president has tried to dismiss her arguement by claming the lawyer did not properly notify him of the suit which, as an elected official, he is entitled to enjoy. The lawyer says the suit was made before he took the oath of president when he was running for the office and had never turned over papers showing he was legally eligible to run in the first place. Taitz says the Justice Department and other government offices that needed to be informed of the suit were served papers in a formal and legal manner and that Obama is now legally obligated to prove citizenship.
Taitz and others have voiced outrage that Obama was even allowed on state's ballots without ever legally verifying his citizenship. Taitz also blasted the fact private citizens do not have equal legal rights as those who hold office. The lawyer pointed out that she has taken multiple legal avenues to request a simple proof of citizenship. This includes taking her case to the Supreme Court of the United States which she says acted strangely when her case was not heard after several justices met privately with the president after the suit was filed. The president contends he was born in Hawaii but a vocal collection of plaintiffs have consistently made their doubts known about it and question why Obama and Hawaii never released documents to prove the president was indeed a citizen. A diverse and rather large collection of groups, lawyers, legal scholars and citizens contend the president was born out of the country. They also question why Obama has spent thousands of dollars in legal moves to fight releasing a simple and standard document.
Another source of outrage is the fact the Obama has yet to release many other simple documents that could simply prove his legal citizenship including grammar school records, Occidental College records, Columbia University records, Harvard Law School records, University of Chicago records and items like a passport, church records, adoption records and Illinois State Bar records. The president's legal representatives have continually claimed all legal requirements have been and were met by the president and have described lawsuits including those of Taitz as "garbage".
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Associated Press Employees Say Management Went Too Far With Web Rules
(KNM)---Strife inside the Associated Press is building as employees throughout the world's largest news gathering operation are rallying against rules issued by management concerning the usage of Web sites like Twitter, Facebook and MySpace they say goes too far and intrudes on personal space while clamping down on free speech and expression.
The AP issued a memo to employees about their use of 'social media' moving forward and directly tied their employment to obeying the rules. Leaders of the News Media Guild union feel the company's edicts stretch too far into workers' private lives and amount to censorship. Kevin Keane, a representative of the union, said the memo is troublesome for an organization "that heralds free speech". One particular portion of the memo that is causing fallout is a clear instruction that no AP employee can post anything on their pages concerning the internal workings of their company. The insinuation is that anyone who offers comments about working at the AP or shares anything about what is going on inside the company could be fired.
Keane said the AP's rules concering the private pages of employees is "too broad" and that people "have the right" to comment about work on their private time. "You can't tell people not to talk about anything internal to AP," Keane said. Management at the AP say the memo was meant to clarify the situation concerning social networking and that the company has no intentions of "playing Big Brother" and "scour people's pages looking for things." But union officials point out that the AP's instructions not only call for employees to not post anything work related but also instruct them to edit and censor their own pages and actively delete posts from other people that are placed on their own social pages. "The bottom line is that the company supports social networking as a personal and professional tool, but expects employees to bear in mind how their actions might reflect on the AP," said management of the AP in the memo.
Among the instructions the AP gave to employees:
"Employees must identify themselves as being from the AP if they are using the networks for work in any way."
"Posting material about the AP's internal operations is prohibited on employees' personal pages, and employees also should avoid including political affiliations in their profiles and steer clear of making any postings that express political views or take stands on contentious issues."
(Concerning Facebook): "It's a good idea to monitor your profile page to make sure material posted by others doesn't violate AP standards, any such material should be deleted."
"Managers should not issue friend requests to subordinates, since that could be awkward for employees."
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Another Odd Incident Involving Continental Airlines As Pilot Dies In-Flight
(KNM)---The pilot of a Continental Airlines flight from Brussels to Newark (NJ) died during the flight and was relieved by two other pilots who landed the plane safely at the Northern New Jersey airport. Flight 61 was over the Atlantic when it contacted controllers to alert them that the pilot, a veteran of 21 years of service, had passed away while at the controls. The airline said early indications were that the pilot died of "natural causes" and that the passengers and crew were alerted of the situation. The airline stressed the flight was never in danger as trans-Atlantic flights require additional pilots due to the length of the flights.
The incident is the latest in a series of odd events concerning the airline. Over the past year, several Continental flights have recorded incidents with unidentified flying objects including one pilot reporting a "missle" had flown under the plane near Houston and two Continental pilots reporting they were being tracked by "green lasers" in the area of Newark. Go to Page Two for a story on these incidents that was previously filed on KingNewsMedia.com
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PBS Bans Religious Programming
(KNM)---PBS has decided to officially ban religious programming and grandfathered several affiliates that have aired shows that fall into that category. Orginally, PBS wanted to issue an edit to all stations that all programming it labeled "sectarian" had to end or be booted from the network. That would have forced several stations to choose from airing local church and religious programming including worship services or leave the taxpayer-funded television network. PBS had been reviewing its membership charter and what programming affiliates air that would contradict the network's edict to offer "noncommercial, nonpartisan and nonsectarian." Critics charge the network is simply targeting religion because many of PBS's shows are politically biased and clearly commerical.
PBS says the ban doesn't cover "journalistic" programs about religion or talk programs as long as they don't focus on one particular religion. The network's decision was good news for five stations that carry religious programs including KBYU in Salt Lake City, which is operated by an affiliate of the Mormon Church; KMBH in Harlingen, Tex., operated by the local Catholic diocese and WLAE in New Orleans, operated by a Catholic lay organization. In addition, PBS decided that affiliates could air religious programs, includign services, on digital sub-channels as long as the stations do not use the PBS logo and identify the sub-channels as PBS.
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Kenya Increasingly Upset Over Perceived Insults By Obama
(KNM)---The glee and pride displayed in Kenya over the election of Barack Obama as U.S. President has turned into a growing dissatisfaction around the country over what many believe are insults the president has made toward the African nation. The L.A. Times is reporting is that the anticipation many Kenyans had after the election for Obama to speedily strengthen America's ties to land of his father and shower it with personal visits and benefits has morphed into a feeling that the president has ignored the nation.
Although Obama is in office just about a half-year, Kenyans felt the first-ever visit by a sitting American president would be one of the first things Obama would do. The president's recent trip to region which did not include a stop in Kenya had many upset with the new president. In addition, when it was announced that Obama's first African visit would be to Ghana, emotions were further hurt. A trip to the U.S. by Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga also resulted in perceived insults when the White House did not invite him for an official visit but reached out to the president of Tanzania, Kenya's neighbor and rival.
It's front-page stuff for the newspapers in the African country and lawmakers are beginning to tap anger for political purposes. One official has requested a government inquiry be made into why Obama is visiting Ghana in July and not the homeland of his father. Ironically, there have been calls for an official investigation into why Odinga was not invited to meet Obama at the White House but the Kenyan leader insists his trip to America was for personal reasons and was not a political visit. Regardless, these incidents along with the U.S. Homeland Security Department delaying the first ever U.S. to Kenya direct air flights due to security concerns has politicians and citizens angry.
But supporters of the president along with international observers say that Obama's action, although not deliberate, send a message to the troubled African nation that it must reform socially and politically to gain respect. The recent national election in Kenya was a violent ordeal during which police are accused of the murder of more than 1,000 people. Deep corruption in government, growing tensions between tribes seeking power, numerous human rights abuses and the dismissal of reformation counsel from the United Nations are among the chief items critics use against the nation. In addition, the country was criticised after two human rights workers were shot to death not long after publicly protesting police brutality. The Kenyan government admits to the troubles and the need to reform internally as well as outside it borders so it is planning to hire a Washington-based public relations and lobbyist firm for help.
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Russian Report: Poland Gets The Blame for Causing World War Two
(KNM)---Adolf Hitler didn't start the second world war, it was Poland. So says the latest in a string of odd revisionist or politically charged academic papers coming from Russia's leading universities that some observers believe is being funded and motivated by former Soviet Communists eager to place their past in a better light and distract citizens from many of the country's troubles today. The difference about the latest 'study' is that it's clearly connected to the Kremlin and was posted on Russia's Defense Ministry web site. The author, Sergei Kovalyov, is a member of the armed forces but his study has not been given "official" labeling by the current Russian government.
Kovalyov dismissed the commonly accepted opinion among historians that World War Two began after Hitler invaded Poland in 1939 after being warned by England and France that it would result in conflict. The Russian author says Hitler was 'forced' to invade to Poland because it refused demands by the German dictator to give a portion of its sovereign territory including the key city of Danzig. Hitler contended that a portion of Poland was actually a part of Germany that contained citizens who considered themselves German and wanted to unify with Germany. Hitler had used the same arguement repeatedly to invade other nations as part of his effort to unify the "Sudatenland".
"Everyone who has studied the history of World War Two without bias knows that the war began because of Poland's refusal to satisfy Germany's claims," the author wrote. But outside observers and academics are claiming the revisionist attempt is actually a calculated move by the government to overshadow a continuing discovery of documents that shed more light on how Hitler was actually enabled by Russia in secret to begin the war. Scholars point to documents that chronicle how Germany and Russia met privately and signed a non-aggression treaty toward each other. In turn, the two powers agreed to divide Europe. Germany would "acquire" the western part of the continent while Russia would take the eastern portion. The pact between the two nations was signed on August 24, 1939. A week later, Hitler invaded Poland.
Poland has officially criticised the paper and formally asked the Russian government for an explanation.
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Islamic Terrorist Attack On Soldiers On American Soil Largely Ignored By Media
(KNM)---Apparently, the murder of a late-term abortionist is far more important to the decision makers in the mainstream media newsrooms than a deadly attack on U.S. soldiers on American soil by a convert to Islam who is an open suporter of a holy war against the United States. Various media monitoring groups and KNM's own research concludes that the murder of abortionist Dr. George Tiller received far more media coverage--on average at least a two-to-one ratio--than the shooting of two soldiers and the death of one of them did. Both incidents occured the same week, within days of each other.
"Jihad" came to a small town in Arkansas when Abdul Hakim Mujahid Muhammad, a 24-year old African-American formerly known as Carlos Leon Bledsoe, drove up in front of an Army-Navy recruiting office in Little Rock and opened fire on two soldiers standing on the sidewalk. William Long, a soldier who had just finished basic training, was fatally wounded while Quinton Ezeagwula received serious wounds. Police quickly located the gunman and after arresting the suspect found a SKS rifle and two handguns in the truck he was driving.
The suspect, whose converted middle name literally means a practicer of 'jihad', was from Memphis and gloated to police he had specifically targeted his victims because they were American soldiers and stated he would have killed many more if he could have done it. He also stated his actions were in protest of American soldiers stationed in the Middle East and retribution for the killing of Muslims by American troops.
Hours after the incident, it was revealed the FBI had been investigating Muhammad and considered him a potential threat for domestic terrorism. It was also revealed that the suspect had traveled to Yemen where it is believed he received mentorship by terrorists that he affiliated with and also had a fake Somai passport. Both countries are high on the watchlist for security officials since both are hotspots for harboring and training terror cells.
A growing collection of different groups ranging from military and law enforcement organizations to conservative political groups and media watchdogs have been sharply critical of the mainstream media for under-reporting the incident which they say is a terrorist act on American soil that is being played-down due to the liberal bias and lack of respect for the war on terror by the media. In addition, President Barack Obama has been deeply criticised as well for a long-delayed offical statement from the White House concerning the shooting and murder of American soldiders on home soil. Critics point to the fact the White House quickly issued a statement about the murder of Dr. Tiller, expressing regret, anger and a call for tolerance and did not release any statement about the Little Rock shooting for days. When the president finally did offer a statement, critics charge it was far shorter and less emotional than the statement issued for the abortionist.
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PBS Challenges Affiliates With Religious Programming
(KNM)---The Public Broadcasting Service has opened up a Pandora's Box of activism both praising and blasting its decision to review whether affiliates can remain with PBS if they carry religious programming. The decision to kick-out stations that air religious programs is particularly striking nerves in Utah where Brigham Young University and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, routinely air shows on station KBYU.
PBS's offical statement says that a committee has decided to review affiliates to determine if they are strictly adhering to the PBS mandate that they offer a "nonsectarian, nonpolitical and noncommercial educational service" to viewers. Critics scoffed at the statement, stressing PBS itself has become very political in its programming with a definite liberal slant and pointed to Bill Moyers' show as a prime example of biased political journalism funded by the network. In addition, critics contend that PBS has also blatantly endorsed specific cultural communities such as homosexuals and environmentalists and have increasingly become a commercial network through on-air sponsor segments and the hawking of everything from dvd's to clothing.
"This is nothing more than another attack on a segment of our society that is traditionally non-liberal or non-Democrat," said columnist Charles Boz. "Turn on PBS today and you're far more apt to see documentaries about homosexuals and their love lives or anti-business rants from global warming extremists before you see a family-themed program at 8pm any longer."
Speaking for PBS, Jan McNamara defended the network's decision by saying no review of the network's affiliates has been done since 1997 so a re-examination was overdue. McNamara said it is unclear whether a station could lose its PBS affiliation because of religious programming. BYU spokeswoman Carri Jenkins said officials are confident the station will continue to offer "educational and uplifting" programming. BYU is owned by the Mormon church.
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Obama Administration Rewards Black Panther Voter Intimidation With Lawsuit Dismissal
(KNM)---A wide collection of liberal, conservative and non-partisan groups, inlcuding southern black civil rights organizations and independent election monitors, are expressing anger and disappointment that the Obama Administration has decided to dismiss charges and toss-away a lawsuit the Justice Department had won against the New Black Panthers and numerous civil rights on Election Day.
A group of members of the New Black Panther Party were caught on several videos clearly standing in front of a voting location brandishing weapons, harrassing non-blacks, proclaiming themselves as official security, using racial slurs against whites, asking media, private citizens, city workers and election monitors for credentials to enter the voting area and attempting to intimidate Republican and other non-Obama election monitors.
The Justice Department's lawsuit against the party's members during the final days of the Bush Administration detailed serious charges of numeorus voting rights violations, display of a "deadly-weapon", usage of hate-speech against blacks and whites attempting to confront them and previous support for campaigns of violence against non-blacks and Jews. An affidavit filed in the case from a poll monitor stated one of the members declared to a white voter, "....you're about to be ruled by the black man, cracker."
The case moved along in court once President Obama took office and prosecutors, due to clear video evidence and a large quantity of testimony against the Panthers, won the case with relative ease on May 15th. It's what happened afterward that shocked and angered many citzens and organizations. The Justice Department, under approval of the president, then ordered the prosecutors to drop the charges against the Panthers to avoid sentencing once the case was won.
In a shocking display of appeasement and conflicting tones, the Justice Department issued a statement that downplayed the incident and hailed a simple injunction it put in place against one member who had brandished a nightstick several feet away from the doors of the voting location: "The Justice Department was successful in obtaining an injunction that prohibits the defendant who brandished a weapon outside a Philadelphia polling place from doing so again. Claims were dismissed against the other defendants based on a careful assessment of the facts and the law." Bartle Bull, a campaign manager for Robert Kennedy presidential bid in the 1960's who also worked as a civil rights attorney in the south during the same time witnessed the behavior of the Panthers at the Philadelphia location and stressed it was the most blatant form of voter intimidation he had ever seen.
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Somalis In U.S. High On Terror Watch
(KNM)---Somalia has long been a primary focus for anti-terrorism efforts by the United States but now Homeland Security and FBI officials are concerned that cells of Somalis living in the United States itself are actively involved in plans to attack the nation as well as provide intelligence back to several terrorist organizations.
A large influx of Somali refugees have left security circles believing that numerous terrorist-affiliated immigrants have mixed in with the scores fleeing political and social upheavel in the African nation. In particular, an active Somali community near the nation's capital is receiving extra scrutiny. Intelligence agents, published reports say, noted a radical sub-segment exists in the large northern Virginia community where there are serious anti-American activists working the neighborhood as well as members of a mosque that has been routinely connected to Muslim extremists and connected to the massacre of thousands of Americans on September 11, 2001.
The Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Va., whose members knew and gave assistance to at least two of the 9/11 hijackers, is now working with al-Qaida to arm and recruit fighters ? including Americans ? for the holy war in Somalia. Another hotspot is Minneapolis, where individuals have traveled to Somalia to train with an al-Qaida-backed terror wing called Al-Shabab. The Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Center in Minneapolis was the spiritual center to at least 20 Somali-Americans who left for Africa to take part in 'holy war' training and actual attacks.The mosque's imam is on the FBI's terror watch list and is grounded from air travel.
It is believed Al-Shabab continues to actively recruit Americans to join a holy war in Somalia. The group posted earlier in the year a video of a man calling himself an American and promoting holy war in Somalia. U.S. officials worry the men training in Somalia may return to conduct terrorist operations, even suicide bombings, inside America. A man that carried out a suicide bombing that killed 30 in Somalia last year came Minneapolis. Shirwa Ahmed became the first U.S. citizen to blow himself up in a suicide strike. He also prayed at the Abubakar Islamic Center.
The Somali community in Minneapolis has also been the subject of investigations into terrorist money-laundering. Agents suspect millions of dollars collected from food-stamp fraud and drug sales have made their way into overseas bank accounts used by al-Qaida. Nashville has also become a focus for Homeland Secuirty agents as reports of radcial Muslim Somalis gaining control of the community there has increased along with hard evidence including the emergence of the Al-Farooq Islamic Center which is selling Islamic texts and tapes that support violent jihad.
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Cuba Crackdown On Internet Freedom Intensifies
(KNM)---As chatter increases in the United States that the Obama Administration is on the verge of offering historical olive branches to the Communist government of Castro Family-controlled Cuba with possible softer migration, trade and economic barriers troubling actions by the dictatorship are fueling criticism that the Castro brothers are as much an enemy today to democracy and human rights than ever. The latest example they point to is an increasingly heavy-handed crackdown on reporting and any sort of dissenting opinions or free-flow of speech and discussion on the Web. Cubans are not permitted Internet accounts but can use email services in state-approved cybercafes without access to the web.
Bloggers within the nation have been painting far darker and violent pictures of everyday life on the island than what the official government media and representatives offer the world as it attempts to gain investment, trade and tourism to boost one of the poorest economies in the world. A new wave of government police actions to limit internet access and control technology has recently made once frequent bloggers and online 'reporters' silent. The Cuban government accuses them of being on the payroll of anti-government forces including Washington and London in a bid to denigrate the 50-year-old Cuban revolution. The government argues that it has the right to block sites which "encourage subversion" and does so with increasingly regularity and techincal expertise which observers say could well be coming from Russia and China as well as Venezuela.
Some of the higher-priced hotels in the nation that cater to tourists and business-class visitors offer Internet access but the cost is often prohibitive to most citizens. For example, on average someone could purchase an Internet connection card for seven to ten dollars an hour but the typical Cuban earns just under $20 a month. Always seeking to blame the United States for government policy, the Cuban government officially blames Washington for the lack of access to the Web due to the decades-old embargo which it says limited it access to underwater cables. But on the streets and in cyberspace, reports are dripping out of the island that the Communists have been raiding hotels, strong-arming management and practically ensuring only non-Cubans get Web access. Yet, someohow bloggers around the island, although fewer in number, are still able to file reports detailing a brutal and violent government which still imprisons, tortures or kills opponents. In addition, they continue to describe an island filled with suffering as the homeless, sick, poor and hungry increase in numbers.
The Castros eagerly dismiss such reports as nothing more than 'tired American propaganda' against their government and suggest even that some of the bloggers are paid by the American government.
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Hawaii Gov. On Hot Seat Over State's Pushing for "Islam Day"
(KNM)---Linda Lingle, the Republican governor of Hawaii who is also the first female and Jew to hold the office finds herself in the crosshairs of a storm brewing over the state's Senate passing a resolution declaring September 24 as "Islam Day" in the state. The state, already experiencing several years of decreased tourism from mainland United States, is now facing a growing boycott movement and complaints of hypocrisy and political correctness.
Lingle's office has received a growing number of angry calls and e mails which the governor said was to be expected over such a resolution. "Here we are, in a very difficult economy, and it was just unnecessary," said Lingle, who had no authority over the resolution. "It didn't make any sense. You know it's going to get this kind of attention."
The resolution that was passed with just three dissenting votes is to officially honor and respect one of the world's oldest religions and the contributions of Muslims to society. But, a growing number of groups representing various concerns are calling it hypocritical because the state does not have similar days for other faiths or illegal because of the separation of church and state arguement.
The resolution is also hard for supporters in the state senate to defend since reports have surfaced that the entire state of Hawaii's Muslim population comprises less than one percent of the entire population. It is estimated that there are just as many Jews in the state as Muslims while Buddhists make up six percent of the population. Catholics comprise 22 percent of the state's population while overall Christians account for about 70 percent of the citizenship.
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Mexico Reports Giant Decrease In Immigration to United States
(KNM)--The Mexican Government issued a report that details a very large decrease in the number of Mexicans going to the United States legally and illegally. The study suggests more than 226,000 less citizens left Mexico, a decline of more than 25 percent, in a year period ending August of 2008. Mexican officials declined to explain why the study ended nearly a year ago but was only released now. Officials admitted that as in the past, an overwhelming majority of Mexicans leaving the country headed for the United States.
Analysts stress two main reasons for the decrease: the deep economic downturn in the U.S. and a large spike in the number of arrests at the border for illegal entrants into America's southern border states. The trend emerged with the recession and provides new evidence that illegal immigrants from Mexico, by far the biggest source of unauthorized migration to the United States, are drawn by jobs and respond to a sinking labor market by staying away.
The net outflow of migrants from Mexico--those who left minus those who returned-fell by about half in the year that ended in August 2008 from the preceding year. The figures are based on detailed household interviews conducted quarterly by the census agency in Mexico, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography.
The population of illegal immigrants in the United States stopped growing and might have slightly decreased in the last year, an abrupt shift after a decade of yearly influxes, research by demographers in the United States shows. Mexicans account for 32 percent of immigrants in the United States, and more than half of them lack legal status, the Pew center has reported. At least 11 million illegal immigrants remain in the United States.
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Texas Gov. Predicts More States To Declare 'Independence'
(KNM)---Texas Governor Rick Perry, who caught the bi-partisan attention of Washington, D.C. by asserting Texas' ultimate right of sovreignty from the Federal Government and its power, is predicting more states will begin to follow his state's example.
"If this administration gets its way, we'll all be the same. We'll all be the way Washington wants us to be,"Perry said on a call with South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford who is also a leading vocal critic of the federal government's increasing power. Both are Republicans who were actively involved in the recent 'Tea Parties' held across the nation to protest taxes and greater federal power.
Perry said his support for a Texas resolution reaffirming the state's sovereignty under the 10th amendment "goes right to the heart of what the tea parties are all about." He added, "You are going to see more and more laws like that across the country." The Texas governor said that the "tea parties"--the object of ridicule by many mainstream media outlets--demonstrated a growing anger by citizens over the growing government's cost and power as well as its attempt to strip away more state and individual rights.
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Concerns Grow Over ACORN's Role In Upcoming Census
(KNM)---The controversial liberal-activist group Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now or ACORN, a big financial supporter of president Obama's election campaign, is coming under intense scrutiny as concern inceases over the fact a notoriously corrupt activist group that is under investigation in at least 14 states will be a major player in the upcoming census. ACORN's involvement in the periodical counting of American citizens comes on the heels of deep criticism over Obama's decision to move the census into the White House and gain more control over it.
A growing list of states are investigating voter registration fraud conducted by ACORN. The group's officials contend rogue employees are responsible for any illegal activities that took place and were not officially sanctioned by the group. Nevada is one state where ACORN's activities are being scrutinized. The state filed charges against ACORN that are related to the manner in which organization compensated workers who were collecting voter registrations.
"By structuring employment and compensation around a quota system, ACORN facilitated voter registration fraud in this state," said Attorney General Catherine Cortes Masto in a statement. "Nevada will not tolerate violations of the law by individuals, nor will it allow corporations to hide behind or place blame on their employees when its training manuals clearly detail, condone and, indeed, require, illegal acts in performing the job for the corporation."
The Nevada probe began last year when the Clark County registrar of voters, Harvard Lomax, received numerous voter registration applications that appeared to be fraudulent. The forms were identified by the serial numbers on the application as those issued to ACORN for registering new voters. The Clark County registrar?s office filed a complaint with the secretary of state's office.
Washington State filed charges in 2007 against several paid ACORN employees and supervisors for allegedly falsifying 1,700 voter registration forms. In 2008, a Pennsylvania ACORN employee was convicted for fabricating 29 voter registration forms. ACORN representatives deny any wrongdoing and blame the actions of individuals who went outside the rules.
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NFL Team Wins Another Court Case Over "Offensive" Name
(KNM)---17 years and counting. That's how long the Washington Redskins of the National Football League have been fighting a group that is complaining they find the name of the team racially offensive. The team won another decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington which didn't address the racial aspect of the complaint but sided with the football team by citing a legal technicality.
The court agreed that the seven "Native Americans" waited too long to challenge the trademark first issued in 1967. They initially won - the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office panel canceled the trademarks in 1999 - but they've suffered a series of defeats in the federal courts since then.U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly overturned that decision in 2003 in part because the suit was filed decades after the first Redskins trademark was issued. The U.S. Court of Appeals then sent the case back to Kollar-Kotelly, noting that the youngest of the plaintiffs was only 1-year-old in 1967 and therefore could not have taken legal action at the time.
The judge did not address whether the Redskins name is offensive or racist. She wrote that her decision was not based on the larger issue of the appropriateness of Native American imagery for team names. A three-judge panel of the appeals court upheld that decision Friday. The plaintiffs have a backup plan: A group of six American Indians ranging in age from 18 to 24 filed essentially the same claim two years ago, but the new case has been on hold until this one was resolved.
"We're hopeful that case will lead us ultimately to a ruling on the merits," said Philip Mause, attorney for the American Indians. "We're very confident about our position on the merits. We think this term is disparaging of Native Americans." Redskins attorney Bob Raskopf said millions have been spent on the Redskins brand and the team would have suffered great economic loss if they lost the trademark registrations.
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Poll: Americans Increasingly Against Abortion
(KNM)--A new Gallup Poll reports that Americans are increasingly identifying themselves as "pro-life" rather than "pro-choice" with now a majority of 51 percent saying they did not approve of abortion. The results indicate a sizable shift in sentiment across the country concerning the subject and analysts suggest a change of party in the White House is playing a role in the poll.
"This is the first time a majority of U.S. adults have identified themselves as pro-life since Gallup began asking this question in 1995," said Gallup analyst Lydia Saad. Last year, 50 percent of those polled said they were 'pro-choice and this year's poll indicates the number of women, men, conservatives, Republicans and Catholics as well as Protestants who are opposed to abortion is rising.
Democrats have remained steady for almost a decade with 61 percent saying they are 'pro-choice' and 33 percent are 'pro-life' acording to Gallup.
Abstinence Education Funding To End With Obama's 2010 Budget
(KNM)---Federal funding for abstinence education programs in public schools will be replced with so-called comprehensive sex-education programs that promote the use of contraceptives and condoms under next year's budget proposed by president Obama. Obama would cut more than $100 million in spending on abstinence-only education and spend $110 million on a new "teen pregnancy prevention initiative." Another $50 million would be directed to the states for pregnancy prevention programs that rely on condoms.
Valerie Huber, executive director of the National Abstinence Education Association, blasted Obama's plan as ignorant of the facts. "Teen births are starting to inch up again and STD rates are continuing to be at an epidemic level for teens, with at least one in four teen girls having at least one STD," Huber said. "Why would we at this time in particular take away anything that would provide teens with the skills to avoid that risk? It just doesn't make sense at all." Huber also pointed out that Obama's plan ignores a growing trend on the state-level to teach abstinence. "(Obama) is completely eliminating a choice for those states and those communities," Huber said. "It doesn't make sense unless this is purely a discussion of politics versus what's best for youth."
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REPORT: U.S. NAVY CONCERNED OVER POSSIBLE EXISTENCE OF TERRORIST MINI-SUBS
OFF THE COAST OF UNITED STATES PLANNING ATTACK
(KNM)--Leading intelligence and security analyst Joseph Farah is reporting in his G2 Bulletin that the United States Navy has stepped up patrols off the coast of the nation seeking possible miniature submarines that are attempting to sneak into U.S. waters, drop off and smuggle in weapons to be used in a wave of terrorist attacks in the homeland. Farah reports the Navy and intelligence agencies suspect Hezbollah to be the leading organization behind this effort.
What may be surprising and disturbing to many Amercians is the fact the existence of such mini-subs in not new or even a theory---they have been spotted and intercepted and their existence is fact as they have been primarily used by narcotics smugglers from South and Central America to sneak in drugs since Border Patrol Agents have stepped up patrols on land.
Farah reports, "The mini-subs are small semi-submersibles, made of fiberglass and capable of carrying up to four people plus a payload. They are popular with drug smugglers, and now the U.S. is concerned elements of Hezbollah have begun using them for drug-running or smuggling weapons." Navy Admiral James Stavridis, commander of U.S. Southern Command, said "In 2006, we were tracking around three of these. In the year 2007, (the number) jumped to about 30." He said that there were 30 subs spotted in just three months last year.
The Navy Admiral added that he believed the majority of the vessels were still tied to drug cartels in South America but intelligence has discovered that these cartels now have connections and funding from Middle Eastern organizations. "There is clearly fund-raising, money laundering, drug trafficking," Stravridis added. "And, certainly a portion of the funds that are raised in that are making their way back to the Middle East."
Hezbollah's presence in South America has grown according to American intelligence reports. It is now believed the terrorist organization is active in Venezuela, Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil. American intelligence is also increasingly concerned about Iran's ties and active support in Latin America. As far back as 2000, Iran had designated the Hezbollah to be its liaison to Hamas and the Sunni Palestinian Islamic Jihad throughout Latin America.
Stravridis expressed concern over this linkage "(U.S. Southern Command) is concerned about linkage between the Iranian state and nascent Islamic radical terrorism in this region," Stravridis said. Now, Iran itself is showing a growing presence in the region, to which sources claim the Bush Administration has paid little attention. This presence includes diplomatic and intelligence not only in Venezuela but also Bolivia, Nicaragua and Ecuador.
Revealed: Congress' Own 'Chain of Restauraunts' Losing Millions
(KNM)-- Even opponents of 'big government'have been shocked at the revelation that the United States Congress has been operating and funding a chain of private restauraunts that has been losing millions for years and is soaking so much taxpayer money that Democrats in the Senate quietly attempted to privatize it in a bill proposed during a recent late-night session. According to federal reports, the chain of eateries has lost $2 million in the first half of 2008 alone.
The fact that the federal government cannot run a string of coffee shops and eateries will certainly provide ample ammunition to critics of proponets of universal health care being established and run by the same inept politicians. Charles Boz, a KNM political analyst and columnist said, "This is amazing. Pathetic but amazing. Our bloated, inefficient, out-of-touch wreckless Congress and federal government has consistently demonstrated it simply cannot run anything well regardless of which party is in office." Boz added, "The troubling thing is that many Americans have been lured into the false promise of so-called 'universal health care' which senators Obama and Clinton have advocated in one form or another. If Congress is losing money on coffee shops how on earth could it build and maintain a healthcare system for 300 million Americans? The answer is simple, it cannot."
It is estimated that the eateries have lost nearly $20 million since 1993. Another estimate has the restauraunts spending a nickel to make every penny--surely a recipe for disaster. One of the most exclusive dining halls for Congressional members and guests has an estimated payroll cost of $250k for a month. Additional revelations show that the chain of eateries employ about 100 people at an approximate annual salary of $37k. That is separate from a generous collection of federal benefits.
"An absolute disgrace," Boz said. "The hypocrisy and folly of Congress is deep. Here we have people mainly working in glorified coffee shops making seriously more money than the average coffee shop or diner employee and it is off our taxes. Why is Congress even in the restaraunt business and how can anyone advovate this government body managing a health system?" One report predicts that if the Congress' eateries went private, they would turn around a profit in less than five years and could pay nearly $1 million in taxes.
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