It is with little regret that I will be shutting down this blog. To be honest, I need to take a break from the day-to-day political grind, especially when it comes to the insanity that has consumed Washington, D.C. It has been said that all politics is local, and I plan on giving more coverage to local issues on my page at Examiner.com.
Blogging has been a convenient way to vent some steam, but I want it to be both edifying and fun. That is why I will be devoting more time to my other blogs, Lemon Harangue Pie and The Contemporary Calvinist.
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
D.C. expanding public surveillance camera net
(Washington Examiner) - Big Brother may already be watching you in the District, and he will soon have a lot more eyes trained in your direction.
The city's homeland security agency is planning to add thousands of security cameras from private businesses around the nation's capital and the Metro system to the thousands of electronic eyes that authorities are already monitoring 24/7.
(Full story)
The city's homeland security agency is planning to add thousands of security cameras from private businesses around the nation's capital and the Metro system to the thousands of electronic eyes that authorities are already monitoring 24/7.
(Full story)
Army suicides at Fort Hood hit record mark
(MySanAntonio.com) - Sgt. 1st Class Gregory Eugene Giger was a “tall quiet Texan” even after his wife filed for divorce while he was in Iraq, his mom says.
Still, he was devastated.
“The only thing that I know is when she sued for divorce, she charged him with $2,000-a-month child support and insisted that he pay half of the house,” said Helen Giger, 71, of Chandler, east of Dallas. “And by the time she got through charging him with various things, he had very little money left over, not even hardly enough to pay for his rent.”
Authorities found Giger, 42, of Houston dead in his apartment near Fort Hood, hanging by necktie. He was one of at least 22 GIs from the post to commit suicide in 2010.
(Full story)
Still, he was devastated.
“The only thing that I know is when she sued for divorce, she charged him with $2,000-a-month child support and insisted that he pay half of the house,” said Helen Giger, 71, of Chandler, east of Dallas. “And by the time she got through charging him with various things, he had very little money left over, not even hardly enough to pay for his rent.”
Authorities found Giger, 42, of Houston dead in his apartment near Fort Hood, hanging by necktie. He was one of at least 22 GIs from the post to commit suicide in 2010.
(Full story)
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Man loses guns and gun license due to blog about Tucson shooting
ARLINGTON, Mass. (CBS) - A blog threatening members of Congress in the wake of the Tucson, Arizona shooting has prompted Arlington police to temporarily suspend the firearms license of an Arlington man.
It was the headline "1 down and 534 to go" that caught the attention. "One" refers to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head in the rampage, while 534 refers to the other members of the U.S. House and Senate.
Police are investigating the "suitability" of 39-year-old Travis Corcoran to have a firearms license.
(Full story)
It was the headline "1 down and 534 to go" that caught the attention. "One" refers to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head in the rampage, while 534 refers to the other members of the U.S. House and Senate.
Police are investigating the "suitability" of 39-year-old Travis Corcoran to have a firearms license.
(Full story)
Virginia teen detained in Kuwait sues U.S. over no-fly list
(Washington Examiner) - A Northern Virginia teenager detained in Kuwait is suing the U.S. government, saying officials violated his rights by apparently placing him on the no-fly list without reason.
Gulet Mohamed, 19, claims in the suit that he was detained in Kuwait in December at the request of U.S. authorities. The lawsuit says Mohamed, an Alexandria resident, was beaten, tortured and interrogated by Kuwaiti authorities about his prior travels in Yemen and Somalia.
Mohamed was taken into custody in Kuwait when he tried to renew his visa at the Kuwait International Airport on Dec. 20. He claims in the suit that he was tortured for more than week, then taken to a deportation facility. When Mohamed tried to board a flight to the United States on Sunday, the lawsuit says, he was not allowed onto the plane.
(Full story)
Gulet Mohamed, 19, claims in the suit that he was detained in Kuwait in December at the request of U.S. authorities. The lawsuit says Mohamed, an Alexandria resident, was beaten, tortured and interrogated by Kuwaiti authorities about his prior travels in Yemen and Somalia.
Mohamed was taken into custody in Kuwait when he tried to renew his visa at the Kuwait International Airport on Dec. 20. He claims in the suit that he was tortured for more than week, then taken to a deportation facility. When Mohamed tried to board a flight to the United States on Sunday, the lawsuit says, he was not allowed onto the plane.
(Full story)
Survey: U.S. doctors fear health care reform
(Reuters) - Nearly two-thirds of U.S. doctors surveyed fear healthcare reform could worsen care for patients, by flooding their offices and hurting income, according to a Thomson Reuters survey released Tuesday.
The survey of more than 2,900 doctors found many predict the legislation will force them to work harder for less money.
"When asked about the quality of healthcare in the U.S. over the next five years, 65 percent of the doctors believed it would deteriorate with only 18 percent predicting it would improve," Thomson Reuters, parent company of Reuters, said in a statement.
(Full story)
The survey of more than 2,900 doctors found many predict the legislation will force them to work harder for less money.
"When asked about the quality of healthcare in the U.S. over the next five years, 65 percent of the doctors believed it would deteriorate with only 18 percent predicting it would improve," Thomson Reuters, parent company of Reuters, said in a statement.
(Full story)
Monday, January 17, 2011
Man to stand trial for defying TSA agents
(KOB Eyewitness News 4) - A Seattle man’s trial in Albuquerque on charges of making trouble at an airport security checkpoint is getting attention from civil liberties groups all over the country.
Phil Mocek was arrested at the Albuquerque Sunport in November of 2009 after he refused to show I.D. to TSA officers at the security checkpoint. Police say Mocek became disruptive. They arrested him and charged him with disorderly conduct, refusing to obey an officer, criminal trespassing, and concealing his identity. After many delays, his trial in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court was scheduled to begin this morning, but the judge ordered it postponed until January 20.
(Full story)
Phil Mocek was arrested at the Albuquerque Sunport in November of 2009 after he refused to show I.D. to TSA officers at the security checkpoint. Police say Mocek became disruptive. They arrested him and charged him with disorderly conduct, refusing to obey an officer, criminal trespassing, and concealing his identity. After many delays, his trial in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court was scheduled to begin this morning, but the judge ordered it postponed until January 20.
(Full story)
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
Feds threaten to sue states over union laws
WASHINGTON (AP) - The National Labor Relations Board on Friday threatened to sue Arizona, South Carolina, South Dakota and Utah over constitutional amendments guaranteeing workers the right to a secret ballot in union elections.
The agency's acting general counsel, Lafe Solomon, said the amendments conflict with federal law, which gives employers the option of recognizing a union if a majority of workers sign cards that support unionizing.
(Full story)
The agency's acting general counsel, Lafe Solomon, said the amendments conflict with federal law, which gives employers the option of recognizing a union if a majority of workers sign cards that support unionizing.
(Full story)
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