Los Angeles police offer gift cards to take guns off streets

Dec. 27, 2012

Better Idea #1: Instead of stupid gift cards, trade crack for the guns

LOS ANGELES - Police traded gift cards for guns in Los Angeles on Wednesday, in a buyback program Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced as a crime-fighting response to the deadly shooting rampage in Newtown, Connecticut.

(Reuters) - Police traded gift cards for guns in Los Angeles on Wednesday, in a buyback program Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced as a crime-fighting response to the deadly shooting rampage in Newtown, Connecticut.

Police officers handed out $200 grocery store gift cards to people who turned in an automatic weapon, and $100 gift cards to those who provided a handgun, rifle or shotgun.

Los Angeles has held an annual gun buyback since 2009, and similar events have been organized in years past in several other cities, including Detroit and Boston. Police in San Diego had a buyback earlier this month.

Some experts say the buybacks have little effect in reducing gun violence, but Villaraigosa touted the buyback program as one step that can be taken in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14 that claimed the lives of 20 children and six adult staff members.

The shooter, Adam Lanza, killed himself and also shot to death his mother at the home he shared with her, police said.

Los Angeles normally has its gun buyback in May, but Villaraigosa announced last week that the city would have this special buyback in response to the Newtown tragedy.

"There are a number of things we can do. This is just one of them," Villaraigosa said on CNN. "We've got to also address the culture of violence that we've got in this country."

At last count, the Los Angeles gun buyback had collected 1,366 firearms, including 477 handguns and 49 assault weapons, said Vicki Curry, a spokeswoman for the mayor.

The buyback ended at 4 p.m. local time, but a final tally of guns collected was not expected to be released before Thursday. In May, the city's annual gun buyback program collected 1,673 firearms at six locations, compared to two locations used for the program on Wednesday, Curry said.

At each of the locations where the buyback was held, a line of cars stretched around the block, Curry said. People dropping off their guns were asked to leave them in the trunks of their cars, where officers retrieved the weapons. Those surrendering their guns were allowed to remain anonymous.

While officials in Los Angeles and elsewhere have said the gun buybacks help keep streets safe, a 2004 report by the National Research Council of the National Academies questioned that conclusion.

Among the report's findings were that guns surrendered in buybacks tend to be old or inherited from previous owners, and not likely to be used in crime. Also, gun owners find it easy to replace their firearms, according to the report, which was titled "Firearms and Violence: A Critical Review."

(Reporting By Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Todd Eastham)

China seizes TVs, satellite equipment in Tibetan area

Dec. 27, 2012

(Reuters) - Chinese authorities have confiscated televisions from 300 monasteries in a heavily Tibetan part of the west of the country and dismantled satellite equipment that broadcast "anti-China" programs, prompted by Tibetan self-immolations in the region.

Some 94 Tibetans, including 81 this year, have set themselves on fire in protest against Chinese rule. Five self-immolations occurred in Tibetan-dominated Huangnan prefecture in Qinghai province, the state-run Qinghai news agency said on Thursday.

The government in Huangnan said its approach in tackling self-immolations comprised of "guiding public opinion on the Dalai issue", increasing patrols and "blocking outside harmful information", according to the news agency, which is managed by the Qinghai government.

"At this critical moment for maintaining social stability in Huangnan prefecture ... (we must) strengthen measures and fully fight the special battle against self-immolations," the article said.

"We do not know anything about it," an official from the Huangnan prefecture government told Reuters by telephone, when asked to confirm the report, before hanging up.

Beijing considers Nobel peace laureate the Dalai Lama, who fled China in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule, a separatist. The Dalai Lama says he is merely seeking greater autonomy for his Himalayan homeland.

The article said the prefecture's agricultural and pastoral areas had relied on certain satellite equipment "to watch and listen to overseas, anti-China programs".

The local government would invest 8.64 million yuan ($1.39 million) to install 50 transmitters that would broadcast 70 percent of the prefecture's television channels, the report said.

China has repeatedly denounced the Dalai Lama and exiled Tibetan groups for fomenting the self-immolations.

The United States and several other countries have called on China to end repressive policies and to negotiate with the Dalai Lama.

Beijing has defended its iron-fisted rule in Tibet, saying the remote region suffered from dire poverty, brutal exploitation of serfs and economic stagnation until 1950 when Communist troops "peacefully liberated" it.

($1 = 6.2353 yuan)

(Reporting by Sui-Lee Wee, Additional reporting by Huang Yan; Editing by Nick Macfie)

"Real Change": Where have we heard that before?

Dec. 27, 2012

Syria needs "real change" to end conflict: Brahimi

DAMASCUS | Thu Dec 27, 2012 5:12am EST

(Reuters) - International envoy Lakhdar Brahimi called on Thursday for real change in Syria to end 21 months of conflict and said a transitional government must be established with full powers to rule the country until new elections.

Brahimi, speaking in Damascus at the end of a five-day trip to Syria during which he met President Bashar al-Assad, did not spell out what measures were needed but said that only substantial change would meet the demands of ordinary Syrians.

"Certainly it was clear in Geneva, and it's even clearer now that the change which is needed is not cosmetic or superficial," Brahimi said, referring to an international meeting on Syria in Switzerland six months ago.

"I believe the Syrian people need, want and aspire to genuine change and everyone knows what this means," he said.

"A government must be created ... with full powers. Full powers ... means this government must have all the powers of the state," Brahimi added. "This government will hold power during the transitional period."

Brahimi is due in Moscow on Saturday and said he also expected to have a third joint meeting with U.S. and Russian officials soon following two rounds of talks earlier this month.

But he denied what he said were reports of a U.S.-Russian plan to end the conflict in which 44,000 people have been killed.

The veteran diplomat, who took over as Syria envoy in August from former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, also said he was not yet proposing a "complete plan" to resolve the crisis.

"What is preferred is that we don't present such a plan until we feel that all sides have agreed to it. That way, implementing it is easy. If that doesn't happen, the other solution could be to go to the (United Nations) Security Council to issue a binding resolution for everyone," he said.

(Reporting by Marwan Makdesi; Editing by Jon Boyle)

War On Terrorism FAIL: Obama Edition

Dec. 27, 2012

Pakistani Taliban outline ceasefire conditions, including adoption of Islamic law and a break with the US

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The Pakistani Taliban have outlined conditions for a ceasefire, including the adoption of Islamic law and a break with the United States, a spokesman said Thursday, an offer a senior government official described as "preposterous".

The Taliban, in a letter sent to the Pakistan daily The News, also demanded that Pakistan stop its involvement in the war pitting Afghan insurgents against the Kabul government and refocus on a war of "revenge" against India.

The letter from Taliban spokesman Amir Muawiya comes as the focus in Afghanistan shifts from a military push by NATO troops to potential peace talks, and amid speculation of a rift between top Pakistan Taliban leaders.

Military officials told Reuters last month that Pakistan Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud had lost operational command to his deputy, Wali ur-Rehman, who is considered to be more open to reconciliation with the Pakistani government. The Taliban deny Mehsud has lost command.

The Pakistani Taliban are a separate entity allied to the Afghan Taliban. Known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), they have launched devastating attacks against the Pakistani military and civilians.

"They are a bunch of criminals. This is not the Afghan Taliban. They are not open to talks," said one senior government official who called the Pakistan Taliban offer "preposterous".

"No one can take such an offer or terms seriously. The TTP is not a proper entity, certainly not one any government can negotiate with."

The ceasefire conditions, confirmed by spokesman Ihsanullah Ihsan in a phone call to Reuters, said Pakistan should rewrite its laws and constitution according to Islamic law.

"We are ready to cease fire with Pakistan as long as they meet our demands, that an Islamic system should be put into place, they should fix their foreign policy and stop agreeing to American's demands," Ihsan said.

The militants accused Pakistan's army of acting as "mercenaries" for America and pledged to continue attacks on two major political parties they say serve U.S. interests.

"The big mistake (the government) made is that they fought America's war in Afghanistan and brought it into Pakistan," Ihsan said.

NATO troops are due to hand over control of most operations in Afghanistan to Afghan forces next year and officials have been eager to start peace talks with the Taliban there.

But the Taliban insurgency in both Pakistan and Afghanistan is fragmented and senior commanders often disagree with each other over strategy.

(Reporting By Katharine Houreld; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Obama Fail: Stimulus Non-Participant Shows Growth While "Stimulated" Competition Failed

Dec. 27, 2012

Ford says it is to invest $773 million to expand Michigan factories, create 2,350 new jobs and save 3,240 more

Ford logo displayed at the 2012 North American International Auto Show January 10, 2012 in Detroit, Michigan. Ford said Thursday it will invest $773 million to expand factories across its home state of Michigan, generating 2,350 new jobs, part of a plan to add 12,000 jobs by 2015.

AFP - US auto giant Ford said Thursday it will invest $773 million to expand factories across its home state of Michigan, generating 2,350 new jobs, part of a plan to add 12,000 jobs by 2015.

The investment will help save an additional 3,240 jobs, it said.

"Even as we wrap up an incredibly busy year of capacity expansions and product launches, we are continuing to look to the future," Jim Tetreault, Ford vice president of North America Manufacturing, said in a statement.

"These investments, many of which are already under way, will ensure our southeast Michigan manufacturing facilities can support our aggressive growth plans."

The Dearborn-based manufacturer posted its best November since 2005, as sales rose six percent to 177,673 vehicles. The results were driven by strong demand for its small cars, which posted their best November in 12 years.

Ford employs some 172,000 people and maintains 65 plants worldwide.

79 Year Old Grandfather Shoots and Kills Man Who Was Beating His Granddaughter

Dec. 26, 2012

UPDATE: Coroner identifies man shot at South Denby Avenue home

Police: No charges filed at this time

Photo by Denny Simmons, DENNY SIMMONS // Buy this photo

DENNY SIMMONS / Courier & Press Evansville police investigate a shooting in the 500 block of South Denby Avenue that left one man dead at about 7 p.m. Sunday.

EVANSVILLE — A 79-year-old Evansville man shot and killed a 19-year-old who was attacking his granddaughter, Evansville Police said in a news release.

Davon Obryant Gee was pronounced dead at a home in the 500 block of South Denby Avenue on Sunday night, according to the Vanderburgh County Coroner's Office.

The name of man who shot and killed Gee has not been released by police because the man has not been charged with a crime, according to city police officials.

Police said Gee got into an argument with a 17-year-old girl at the Denby Avenue home on Sunday evening. Gee threatened to assault the girl and to use a "stun gun" on her.

She ran from the house but Gee chased her down, catching her in the yard and beating her. The girl's 79-year-old grandfather, who was in the house, came outside to help her. He told Gee to quit beating the girl.

According to witnesses, Gee then threatened to use the stun gun on the grandfather. Reaching into his pocket, he approached the 79-year-old who told him several times to stop.

The grandfather told police he feared he could not defend himself against the bigger, younger attacker and that he feared the stun gun would kill him due to a heart condition. When the man kept approaching, witnesses said, the grandfather pulled out a handgun and fired one shot. Gee ran into a neighboring yard and collapsed.

When police arrived, they attempted life-saving measures but the man died at the scene.

The gun was recovered inside the grandfather's house. The stun gun was recovered from Gee's pocket.

Investigators will complete a case file and forward it to the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor's Office for review.

Gee died from cardiac arrhythmia and exsanguination due to a gunshot to the chest, according to a report from the Vanderburgh County Coroner's Office. An autopsy was performed Monday morning.

EARLIER:

Evansville Police Department officers were working Sunday night to figure out what led to a fatal shooting near Downtown Evansville.

Police were dispatched to a house at 505 S. Denby Ave. about 7:10 p.m. Sgt. Jason Cullum said they found a young man dead in the front yard of a nearby house.

He said several people who were believed to have been involved in the events surrounding the shooting were taken to police headquarters for questioning.

Cullum said a weapon had not yet been recovered.

"We have the house locked down and we have applied for a search warrant," he said.

Two hours after the shooting officers were still trying to verify the name of the slain man, whose body remained in the yard covered by a sheet. Police had the street and yards around the area of the shooting blocked off with tape, and crime scene investigators were on the scene working.

A baby carriage remained in the street in front of the houses during the early hours of the investigation.

Cullum said there were several people inside the house when the shooting took place, including a young child.

"We believe everybody knew each other," he said.

Source: © 2012 Evansville Courier & Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

SOCIALIZED MEDICINE UPDATE #2: Preemie Baby Saved When Scissors Left on a Scale Deemed Her ‘Viable’ Now Home in Time for Christmas

Dec. 26, 2012

(The Blaze) - Maddalena Douse was born at 23 weeks — that’s about three months too early. Her parents never thought she would make it home. But now she’s home from the hospital in time for Christmas, which could be, in part, thanks to a pair of scissors that saved her life nearly six months ago.

Although most stories involving babies and scissors might not call up thoughts of saving lives. In Maddalena’s case, scissors accidentally left on a scale could have meant the difference between life and death for her, the U.K.’s The Sun reported.

Maddalena Douse was born at 23 weeks at a weight and stage of development deemed not medically viable. (Image: ITN News video screenshot)

In the U.K., preemies have to weigh at least a pound to be considered medically “viable,” or worth the measures it would take to save them in their delicate condition. Maddalena was lucky and weighed just a pound. According to The Sun, it wasn’t known that a pair of scissors on the scale helped up Maddalena’s weight until she was already hooked up to a ventilator.

Eight-inch Maddalena really weighed 382 grams (13.47 ounces) when she was born.

Maddalena now at home and a healthy weight. (Image: ITN News video screenshot)

Now, mother Kate Douse, 31, told the Sun her “miracle” baby is getting to a healthy weight.

“We never thought we’d ever bring Maddalena home,” Douse said, according to the Sun. “She now weighs 5½ [pounds] and is getting stronger by the day. She’s our little miracle and we’re so glad to have her home in time for Christmas.”

Maddalena with her mother and father. (Image: ITN News video screenshot)

There is a sad element to the otherwise miracle of a story. Maddalena did have a twin Isabella, who died a few weeks after she was born.

Watch this ITN News report with footage of Maddalena and her parents:


Hat Tip: National Right To Life News

Socialized Medicine Update: Woman dies after receiving smoker's lungs in organ transplant

Dec. 26, 2012

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!!!!

A woman born with cystic fibrosis who died after being given a lung transplant from a smoker. Her father is now calling for hospitals to tell patients about a donor's health history.

Jennifer Wederell, 27, died of cancer on August 24 at her home in Hawkwell, Essex, 16 months after being given the transplant at Harefield Hospital in London.

She was not told at the time of the transplant that the middle-aged donor had been a smoker.

Now Jennifer's father, Colin Grannell, says people facing organ transplants should be told of any adverse history from the donor that might affect a successful transplant.

He says he does not think his daughter would have agreed to the transplant if she had known the full facts.

The hospital says it is sorry she was not given the choice.

Wederell, who was on oxygen for 24 hours a day by her mid-20s, had been on the waiting list for a lung transplant for 18 months when she was told there was a match in April 2011.

She received the transplant and married her long-term boyfriend, David, that same year.

But by February, less than a year after the operation, Wederell had been diagnosed with cancer, with the terrible news that it had spread.

"The shock immediately turned to anger in so far as all the risks were explained in the hour before her transplant and not once was the fact that a smoker's lungs would be used mentioned," Grannell told the Daily Mail.

"She was dying a death that was meant for someone else."

Grannell has set up a Facebook site, Jennifer's Choice, to encourage non-smokers to sign up to the organ donor register.


Source: Sky News

PRIVACY IN JEOPARDY? Outrage After Paper Names NY Gun Permit Holders

Dec. 26, 2012

(FoxNews.com) - A local New York newspaper is drawing the ire of its readers after publishing an interactive map that shows the names and addresses of thousands of residents who have handgun permits.

The online map was published by The Journal News along with an article under the headline: "The gun owner next door: What you don't know about the weapons in your neighborhood."

The newspaper obtained, and then published, the names and addresses of pistol permit holders in Westchester and Rockland counties through a Freedom of Information Act request.

The article, in explaining the decision to publish the information, pointed to the school massacre in nearby Newtown, Conn., and the concerns of some residents about which of their neighbors might have firearms.

But readers swiftly condemned the move. They pointed out that the interactive map could make the gun owners a target, but also make clear to would-be robbers which homes do not contain a gun.

"Do you fools realize that you also made a map for criminals to use to find homes to rob that have no guns in them to protect themselves?" one reader wrote on Facebook.

"You have just destroyed the privacy of these law abiding citizens and by releasing this list, you have equated them to that of sex offenders and murders," wrote another. "These are law abiding gun owners, they are no danger to anyone except for criminals. And with this information you have made them targets for both criminals and anti gun lobbyist who i am sure are going to treat them like monsters."

The newspaper, in a written statement, defended the decision to run the names.

"The massacre in Newtown remains top-of-mind for many of our readers," the statement said. "In the past week, conversation on our opinion pages and on our website, LoHud.com, has been keenly focused on gun control.

"Our readers are understandably interested to know about guns in their neighborhoods. We obtained the names and addresses of Westchester and Rockland residents who are licensed to own handguns through routine Freedom of Information law public-records requests."

The map showed the locations of pistol permit holders -- though did not specify whether those shown actually owned a weapon. Since rifles and shotguns can be bought without a permit, that information was not included.

The newspaper separately noted that the reporter on the story "owns a Smith & Wesson 686 .357 Magnum and has had a residence permit in New York City for that weapon since February 2011."

Nevermind Education: Condoms for free at 22 city schools

Dec. 26, 2012

The district is installing dispensers over winter break at high schools with the highest rates of STDs.

Coming over the holiday break to about a third of Philadelphia high schools: clear plastic dispensers chock-full of free condoms.

The dispensers will be placed in the 22 high schools whose students had the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases, and condoms will be available to any student - so long as their parents did not sign a form opting them out of the program.

It's a pilot designed to address "an epidemic of sexually transmitted disease in adolescents in Philadelphia," said Donald F. Schwarz, the deputy mayor for health and opportunity. Since April 2011, the city has given away about four million condoms, and now, STD rates are falling.


But, Schwarz pointed out, 25 percent of new HIV infections in Philadelphia are teens, and that's a major worry.

Some city high schools - the dozen that have "health resource centers" - already dispense free condoms. And the Health Department also provides them at city high schools when they go in to test teens for STDs, as they do every year voluntarily with a parent's consent.

The pilot is the next logical step, Schwarz said.

"I support the policy strongly," said Mayor Nutter. "This is a serious public health matter."

Peg Devine, school nurse at Lincoln High - which is not a participant in the pilot program - said she supported making condoms available to sexually active students. But she worries about the ability of already-stretched nurses to juggle one more task.

Two of the schools in the pilot - Dobbins and High School of the Future - do not have full-time nurses.

In an e-mail to nurses, Philadelphia School District officials said that the dispensers would be installed "just inside the doorway near the entrance to your office" and that nurses were not to be charged with managing access.

"Opt-out letters are to be maintained by the school office," Assistant Superintendent Dennis W. Creedon wrote. "Students are to honor the wishes of their parents. If a student disrespects their guardian's directive, that is an issue of the home."

Still, Devine said, "I just can't imagine the parents of a 14-year-old being happy with this."

Nutter, himself the parent of a Philadelphia School District high schooler, said it was a necessary move.

source: Philadelphia Inquirer

Ready to eat: the first GM fish for the dinner table

Dec. 26, 2012

US decision after 17-year battle over fast-growing salmon could pave way for same step in Britain

(UK Independent) - A GM salmon which grows twice as fast as ordinary fish could become the first genetically-modified animal in the world to be declared officially safe to eat, after America's powerful food-safety watchdog ruled it posed no major health or environmental risks.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it could not find any valid scientific reasons to ban the production of GM Atlantic salmon engineered with extra genes from two other fish species – a decision that could soon lead to its commercial production.

The verdict clears one of the last remaining hurdles for GM salmon to be lawfully sold and eaten in the US and will put pressure on salmon producers in Britain and Europe to follow suit.

Successive chief scientists to the UK Government, as well as science institutions such as the Royal Society, have endorsed the concept of GM technology as a tool for increasing food production in the 21st Century, but consumer opposition has so far blocked the approval of GM food for the dinner table.

Several government bodies including the advisory committees on the release of GM organisms and on novel foods and processes would have to review the technology before it was approved in the UK.

Supporters of the technology believe the GM salmon will make it not only easier and cheaper to produce farmed salmon, but that it could also be better for the environment because they can be grown on land-based fish farms.

Sir John Beddington, the current chief scientist, warned two years ago of a "perfect storm" of growing human numbers, climate change and food shortages, where it would be "very hard to see how it would be remotely sensible to justify not using new technologies such as GM".

GM opponents, however, argue that the introduction of the fast-growing salmon creates risks for both human health and the environment. They also argue that the salmon will be the start of concerted efforts to create other GM animals for human consumption, which could raise serious questions about animal welfare.

The FDA had already indicated the salmon was fit for human consumption. But in a draft environmental assessment written in May and published on Friday following inquiries by The Independent, it goes further by declaring that the production of the GM fish is unlikely to have any detrimental impact on the wider environment.

Opponents of the GM salmon – which some have dubbed the "Frankenfish" – have argued it could escape into the wild, interbreed with wild fish and undermine the genetics of the endangered Atlantic salmon, the "king of fishes" grown on fish farms in the UK.

However, the company behind the GM AquAdvantage salmon emphasised that the genetically engineered fish will be only be grown as sterile females and kept in secure containers on land.

In its draft assessment prepared as part of a New Animal Drug Application (NADA), the FDA agrees that the possibility of GM salmon escaping from fish farms is extremely remote and that interbreeding with wild salmon is equally unlikely.

The possibility of the GM salmon escaping into rivers and the sea from land-based fish farms is "extremely remote", the FDA said.

"[The] FDA has made the preliminary determination it is reasonable to believe that approval of the AquAdvantage salmon NADA will not have any significant impacts on the quality of the human environment of the United States (including populations of endangered Atlantic salmon) when produced and grown under the conditions of use for the proposed action," it concludes.

Anti-GM groups last night raised concerns about the report. Peter Riley, of the pressure group GM Freeze, said: "The sterility system does not guarantee that there will be no escapes into the wild and some of them will be fully fertile. It's also debatable whether anyone wants to buy GM salmon, even in the US, if it is properly labelled."

The FDA also states the two other US Government agencies responsible for overseeing laws on endangered species – the National Marine Fisheries Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service – have agreed with the FDA's assessment that there will be "no effect" on wild Atlantic salmon or its habitat.

In its report, the FDA warns that if final approval is not given by the US Government, other countries may still develop GM Atlantic salmon.

The research into the GM salmon goes back to the late 1980s and it has gone through 17 years of bureaucratic wrangling over whether it should be approved for human consumption. The FDA indicated in 2010 that it would declare the GM salmon safe to eat but the issue was then kicked into the Washington long grass, which some have put down to nervousness on the part of the White House in the run-up to this year's Presidential election.

AquaBounty Technologies, the Massachusetts biotechnology company that developed the GM salmon, has become increasingly irritated by the delays to its application, which have caused severe strains on its finances.

Last September, the company's chief executive, Ron Stotish, expressed his anger with the FDA, which promised in May this year that it would soon publish its environmental assessment, on which the approval of the application rests.

"We are frustrated and disappointed in the delay, and we feel the FDA and US administration have a responsibility to inform us why they have not yet released the environmental assessment and moved forward our application," Mr Stotish said.

A spokeswoman for the FDA said: "The draft environmental assessment is an interim step in the overall evaluation of the application and is not a decision on the application itself."


Animal farm: a technological revolution

1972: Scientists use special enzymes to snip fragments of DNA – genes – from one microbe and insert or "recombine" them into another microbe. The revolution in recombinant DNA begins with the creation of the first GM organism.

1980: Laboratory mice with genes inserted from other individuals become the first genetically modified "transgenic" animals. Dozens of other experimental species, from pigs and chickens to frogs and fish, follow over the next two decades.

1989: The AquAdvantage founder salmon is created by micro-injecting a fragment of DNA from an ocean pout fish and a Chinook Pacific salmon into a fertilised Atlantic salmon egg.

1995: AquaBounty Technologies begins the lengthy process of applying for official US Government approval to develop the AquAdvantage salmon commercially.

2002: The first commercially viable GM animal is created from two species by Nexia Biotechnologies in rural Quebec. The "spider-goat" has a single gene from a golden orb-weaving spider which means its milk contains spiders silk, five times the strength of steel, which is used for making bullet proof vests.

2009: The US Food and Drug Administration issues its final guidance to the GM industry on rules governing the regulation of genetically engineered animals, which clarifies its status as the chief statutory and regulatory body for GM animals.

2011: British scientists create chickens which don't spread bird flu by inserting an artificial gene that introduces a small part of the flu virus into the bird. This gives them the virus, but prevents them from spreading it.

2012: A genetically modified cow in New Zealand is the first to produce milk with no Beta-lactoglobulin (BLG), the protein that is thought to be responsible for allergic reactions. Meanwhile, Chinese scientists create a GM cow whose milk includes omega-3 fats, normally found in fish.

May 2012: The US Food and Drug Administration completes its environmental assessment of the GM salmon but delays publication of the draft report until 21 December 2012.

More Special Than Yours: School Obama's Daughters Attend Has 11 Armed Guards

Dec. 26, 2012

by AWR Hawkins

(Big Government) - Some interesting news has broken in the wake of the latest push for gun control by President Obama and Senate Democrats: Obama sends his kids to a school where armed guards are used as a matter of fact.

The school, Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC, has 11 security officers and is seeking to hire a new police officer as we speak.

If you dismiss this by saying, "Of course they have armed guards -- they get Secret Service protection," then you've missed the larger point.

The larger point is that this is standard operating procedure for the school, period. And this is the reason people like NBC's David Gregory send their kids to Sidwell, they know their kids will be protected from the carnage that befell kids at a school where armed guards weren't used (and weren't even allowed).

Shame on President Obama for seeking more gun control and for trying to prevent the parents of other school children from doing what he has clearly done for his own. His children sit under the protection guns afford, while the children of regular Americans are sacrificed.

"Revenge" Turns Vehicle Into Weapon.. Anti-Automotive Crowd Silent

Dec. 26, 2012

Chinese man drives car into students, injuring 13

BEIJING (AP) — A man angered by a court ruling in the murder of his daughter rammed a car loaded with a gas tank and firecrackers into a group of middle schoolers, injuring 13 in the country's latest attack on students.

The man ran down 23 students at Fengning No. 1 Middle School in northern China's Hebei province on Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday, citing local police.

Xinhua said the man, identified as 48-year-old Yin Tiejun, later lit a bottle of diesel in an attempt to set his car on fire.

Police put out the fire and found the gas tank and firecrackers in the trunk of the car, but Xinhua said Yin told police in an interrogation later that the materials were not meant for an attack.

Yin has been detained on charges of endangering public safety, Xinhua said.

Xinhua described Yin as having been upset for years that a court did not sentence to death all four assailants involved in the murder of his daughter three years ago. The report did not give further details of the murder but said the children hurt in Monday's car crash were not tied to the case.

Xinhua said the man did not act under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Students were hospitalized with injuries that included skull fractures and crushed feet, Xinhua said.

The local Fengning county government confirmed the incident in a written statement and said Yin was driving a Geely sedan.

Citing eyewitnesses, the Beijing-based state-run Jinghua Times said the accident occurred when students were leaving school for noon break and that the car accelerated and knocked down students, many of whom were on bikes.

MERRY 'CLIFF'MAS

Hat tip: Drudge

Drama Queen Saga: Minnesota Teacher Forces School Lockdown After Bringing Loaded Gun To School

Dec. 26, 2012

(Mediaite) - A school in Minneapolis, Minnesota was forced to go into lockdown after one of the teachers allegedly brought a loaded gun onto the premises. After being tipped off by a staff member, the resource office at Seward Montessori School confiscated a .357 Magnum handgun that was stashed in a locker belonging to a teacher.

With the nation still reeling from the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, parents were shocked to find out that a teacher at Seward had a gun on the premises. The teacher, who has not been publicly identified yet, allegedly told another faculty member she decided to bring a gun to the school after what happened at Sandy Hook.

Needless to say, having the gun at the school only caused problems for the teacher.

Officers found the fully-loaded .357 Magnum revolver in the staff member’s purse, which was stored in a locker in the teachers’ lounge.

The staff member has a permit to carry, but that doesn’t apply to schools… No staff members or students were harmed or threatened by this incident and there was no evidence the employee intended to use the weapon. Bringing a gun to school is against Minnesota law and violates Minneapolis Public Schools policy.

The teacher has not been fired, but has instead been placed on administrative leave in the wake of this incident.

Watch a report on the incident below, courtesy of KMSP:


KMSP-TV

Firefighter Ambush Shooting: Killer Left Note

Dec. 26, 2012

The man who lured two firefighters to their deaths left a note saying he planned to "do what I like doing best, killing people".

The gunman who ambushed two firefighters as they approached his burning house left a note saying he wanted to torch the neighbourhood and "do what I like doing best, killing people".

Gerald Pickering, police chief in Webster, New York state, said 62-year-old William Spengler armed himself with three weapons and set his house on fire to lure emergency services into a death trap.

Spengler killed two volunteer firefighters - Mike Chiapperini, 43, and 19-year-old Tomasz Kaczowka - and shot two others before taking his own life in the small town on Monday morning.

Police believe human remains found in the burnt-out home are those of the gunman's 67-year-old sister, Cheryl, who has been missing since the blaze. The remains will be examined before identity is confirmed.

The full contents of the two-page, typed note - which police said does not reveal a motive - have not been published, but Mr Pickering said it clearly shows the killer's "intent".

Michael Chapperini 

One of the guns used was a semi-automatic Bushmaster rifle, the same type of gun used in the December 14 school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Mr Pickering said Spengler was "equipped to go to war".

Mr Chiapperini's full-time job was as a public information officer with the Webster police department. He was named firefighter of the year for 2012.

Mr Kaczowka worked as an emergency call dispatcher and Mr Pickering described him as "a tremendous young man".

The two injured volunteer firefighters, Joseph Hofstetter and Theodore Scardino, remain in hospital. They are said to be awake and alert and are expected to recover despite suffering "significant" injuries.

Tomasz Kaczowka

One of the guns used was a semi-automatic Bushmaster rifle, the same type of gun used in the December 14 school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Mr Pickering said Spengler was "equipped to go to war".

Mr Chiapperini's full-time job was as a public information officer with the Webster police department. He was named firefighter of the year for 2012.

Mr Kaczowka worked as an emergency call dispatcher and Mr Pickering described him as "a tremendous young man".

The two injured volunteer firefighters, Joseph Hofstetter and Theodore Scardino, remain in hospital. They are said to be awake and alert and are expected to recover despite suffering "significant" injuries.

Spengler was released from prison in 1998 after serving 17 years for beating his 92-year-old grandmother to death with a hammer in 1980.

Authorities have said he lived a quiet life and had done nothing to bring himself to police attention since his parole.

Spengler's mother Arline, who had lived with her two children, died in October, leaving Spengler on his own with his sister whom he "couldn't stand", according to neighbour Roger Vercruysse.

Spengler "stayed on one side of the house and [Cheryl] stayed on the other," Mr Vercruysse said.

Dozens of people turned out on Monday night for an impromptu vigil to mourn the firefighters, leaving bouquets and messages of condolence at the local fire station.

One man left a crate of beer, the local newspaper told Sky News.

Source: Sky News

Family planning official snared in China trafficking ring

Dec. 26, 2012

This photo, taken on December 18, 2012, shows policemen arresting a child trafficking suspect (C) in Xichang, southwest China's Sichuan province. Police have detained two officials, including a family planning functionary, in China's latest crackdown on child-trafficking that has ensnared 355 suspects, state media reported on December 26.

AFP - Police have detained two officials including one involved in family planning in China's latest crackdown on child trafficking that has ensnared 355 suspects, state media said on Wednesday.

Police from nine regions took part in the joint crackdown beginning December 18 against the nation's trafficking networks, rescuing 89 children, the public security ministry said in a report earlier this week.

Among the suspects was a family planning official surnamed Wang, who was arrested in the southeastern province of Fujian and is being charged with trafficking four babies, the Global Times newspaper reported Wednesday.

Police also arrested another official in Fujian after he and his wife purchased a baby boy, the report said. The couple already have a 10-year-old son.

Chinese academics have long blamed the country's "one-child" policy for contributing to child trafficking. The policy is aimed at controlling growth in China's population, the world's largest at 1.3 billion.

It generally limits people in urban areas to one child, while rural families can have two if the first is a girl. This has put a premium on baby boys, and girls have been sold or abandoned as couples try for a male heir.

"In some cases, family planning officials sell the children," the Global Times quoted Zhang Shiwei, a campaigner against child trafficking, as saying.

"Police are also bribed by people who need to register a hukou, or household registration permit, for their purchased baby."

Family planning officials who have previously been convicted of trafficking are often involved in persuading couples who have violated the population control policy to give up their baby for adoption.

The children are then sold to trafficking rings and have sometimes even found their way into state adoption centres that supply orphans to foreign parents, state media reports have said.

Of the 89 children rescued in the ongoing campaign, five have been returned to their parents, while the others are undergoing DNA testing in an effort to locate their families, the Fuzhou Evening News reported.

Police have said they rescued more than 24,000 abducted children and women last year, some of whom had been sold for adoption or forced into prostitution as far away as Angola.

Personal Accountability Drawer: Toy store worker alleges master-slave sex

Dec. 26, 2012

NEW YORK (UPI) -- A New York City woman, who made $60,000 a year managing a toy store, is suing her ex-boss for an alleged master-slave sex relationship, court papers show.

Twenty-six-year-old Amanda Reyes, the former manager at Fantastic Kids Toys in Manhattan, who had her rent paid among other expenses in addition to her salary, alleged her 60-something boss, Steven Reis, fired her after she tried to end twice-a-week rough-sex sessions with him, the New York Daily News reported.

Court papers said the toy store owner required his manager to engage in "increasing acts of 'rough' sexual activities, including hitting, slapping and biting," in exchange for employment and rent.

Reyes said she was first hired for $10 an hour in December 2010, but court papers said she was promoted to store manager about the time their master-slave relationship began last March.

Reyes' attorney Walker Harman said the two played sex games that included "role-playing and simulations of sorts" at her apartment.

Harman said his client, who has a young daughter, alleges "a manipulative master-servant type of relationship.

Reyes said she lost her job Aug. 29 when she tried to break off the relationship. Reis refused to comment to the Daily News.

The woman's Facebook page said she began dating a police officer from the New York Police Department last June.

Sandy hero dead in surfing accident

Dec. 26, 2012

RINCON, Puerto Rico (UPI) -- A 23-year-old lifeguard, hailed by People as a hero for saving six people during Hurricane Sandy, drowned while surfing in Puerto Rico, a family friend said.

Dylan Smith, of the New York borough of Queens, was found Sunday morning floating near his surfboard near the popular resort Maria's Beach near Rincon, police said.

"The same sport -- the sport of surfing -- that he used to save all those people, it's so shocking that he perished that way," said New York Fire Department Chief Michael Light, a family friend.

Smith and 51-year-old Michael McDonnell were honored in People's Dec. 6 issue as "2012 Heroes of the Year" for saving six people from the fast-paced flooding during Hurricane Sandy Oct. 29. The two attached a rope to Smith's surfboard, which they then used to pull the group to safety in the Rockaways, one of the hardest hit areas during the storm, the New York Daily News reported Monday.

Light said Smith was an "absolute hero," but the younger man didn't see it that way in an interview with the Daily News Dec. 15.

"I don't think I'm a hero. Absolutely not. I just did what I was trained to. I'm a lifeguard. I surf. This is what I do," Smith said.

"They certainly deserve to be called heroes," said Jim DiBenedetto, 58, one of the stranded survivors Smith helped to save. "They came in with so much confidence. ... Mike said we were going to tie a rope, and Dylan came out of nowhere with the surfboard and helped people get across the street to safety."

Pa. a gun-control swing state

Dec. 26, 2012

HARRISBURG, Pa. (UPI) -- Pennsylvania was a swing state in the November election and could be a key battleground when it comes to gun control, debate participants say.

Pennsylvania has a large rural population with a strong tradition of firearms ownership. Through the years, the state has resisted efforts of gun-control advocates to put more restrictions in place. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Sunday. However, the momentum may have shifted with the elementary school massacre in Connecticut, the report said.

Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who has a history of taking the National Rifle Association's point of view on guns, told the newspaper last week he is now ready to support bills to ban assault weapons and high-capacity ammo clips.

Former Gov. Ed Rendell told the Inquirer he believes Pennsylvanians will go for "reasonable" gun laws, and, noting he won elections while supporting gun control measures, asked, "So, how tough is the NRA?"

But there are Pennsylvania gun owners such as Michael Gottlieb, a 55-year-old lawyer from East Norriton, who don't think it's right for gun-control advocates to use the Newtown shooting as leverage.

"There are politicians who see this as an opportunity," Gottlieb said Friday. "For them to capitalize on a tragedy like this to push their agenda is completely wrong."

Another gun enthusiast, Ron Jones, said during a break at the Lower Providence Rod & Gun Club in Montgomery County that he agrees with Gottlieb's sentiments.

"What happened last week was the most unspeakable tragedy," said Jones, 54, an electronics technician from East Norriton. "But blaming the equipment won't help."

Russian pipeline blast, quake strike 2014 Olympics host Sochi

MOSCOW | Wed Dec 26, 2012 1:53am EST

(Reuters) - A gas pipeline blast followed by a mild earthquake has struck Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, which will host the 2014 Winter Olympics, a local government spokeswoman told Reuters on Wednesday.

Irina Gogoleva of Russia's Emergencies Ministry said no one was hurt and there was no apparent damage to the city's infrastructure after a 5.2 magnitude earthquake was reported at 0242 local time on Wednesday (2242 GMT on Tuesday).

"The Emergencies Ministry servicemen scoured through the city districts, bridges and electrical cables, there was no damage," Gogoleva said, adding that the epicentre of the quake was some 150 kilometres (93 miles) off Sochi in the Black Sea.

In an unrelated incident, a gas pipeline that feeds a local power station exploded a couple of hours before the quake.

Gogoleva said the power plant had switched to fuel oil and the city was receiving electrical power. She said the reason for the blast was unknown.

Sochi, the first Russian city to have been awarded the Winter Olympics, is located on the coast close to Georgia, with whom Russia fought a brief war in 2008 over two breakaway regions. The wider volatile Caucasus region is a major source of political tension.

(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Paul Simao)

Blogger's death stirs political hornet's nest in Iran

Dec. 26, 2012

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during the 16th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran, August 30, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Hamid Forootan/ISNA

(Reuters) - There was little about Sattar Beheshti that made him stand out in a working-class suburb south of Tehran called Robat Karim.

Like many of his peers, the 35-year-old laborer was devout and lived at home with his mother. But his life changed when he started a blog called "My Life for Iran" last year.

His entries often focused on the struggles of the working class as well as the political restrictions in Iran, sometimes mixed with personal anecdotes from Beheshti's daily life.

As months passed, the tone on the blog became sharper and more political, with unveiled criticism of the establishment and even the Supreme Leader, a red line in the Islamic Republic.

In one recent post, Beheshti criticized a speech made by the leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at a meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran with the title "You presented a bunch of lies instead of a speech" superimposed over a picture of the cleric.

Other posts faulted Iran's unwavering support for Hezbollah in Lebanon or highlighted the plight of human rights activists.

Retaliation quickly followed.

"Yesterday they threatened me and told me your mother will soon be wearing black," Beheshti wrote in a post on October 29.

The next day security agents from Iran's cyber police, known by the acronym FATA, arrested him. His bruised and battered body was handed to his family a week later, his death the result of torture, according to a smuggled letter from fellow prisoners.

The backlash was swift and furious, especially from other bloggers, even pro-government ones, disturbed at the fate of a pious young man with no known history of political activism.

Their most pointed criticism was directed at the cyber police and their campaign to stop any attempt at a "velvet revolution" in the Islamic Republic through the Internet.

Government officials have not denied the abuse.

"This individual was beaten but this beating was not in a manner that would result in his death," Attorney-General Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejehi told a news conference on December 3.

Within a month of Beheshti's death, seven policemen were arrested and the head of the cyber police was ousted, a dramatic turn of events in a divisive scandal that has shocked Iran.

As international pressure mounts over Iran's disputed nuclear program and harsh economic sanctions bite, the leadership is wary of domestic turmoil, especially with a potentially turbulent presidential election due in June.

IMPACT OF INTERNET

Beheshti's death exposed Iran's political fissures as a handful of lawmakers badgered President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government and the judiciary into ordering an inquiry.

But the most effective tool in publicizing Beheshti's unusual death was the one he had chosen - the Internet.

"I really do believe this is one of the great examples of the impact of the Internet in Iran," said Mahmood Enayat, director of the Iran Media program at the University of Pennsylvania and the founder of Small Media, a non-profit group that focuses on improving information flows in closed societies.

The Internet had become a watchdog, forcing the government to react to anything gathering enough attention, he argued.

"They can't just ignore it anymore."

Although many of the details of Beheshti's detention and death are murky, some are no longer in dispute. On the night of October 30, he was arrested at his home in Robat Karim and transferred to section 350 of Tehran's notorious Evin prison.

Fellow prisoners there said he was hung from the ceiling of a cell and beaten. His arms and legs were then tied to a chair and he was beaten again. At times, his interrogators threw him on the ground and kicked him in the head and neck.

A group of political prisoners talked to Beheshti while he was detained, and slipped out a letter based on their observations and his account to opposition activists.

"When they brought Sattar to section 350, the marks of torture were visible on all parts of his body," said the letter signed by 41 prisoners and published on opposition websites.

Despite his injuries, Beheshti filed a complaint about his treatment to prison officials. Shortly before he was transferred to another detention facility, Beheshti told his fellow prisoners that his captors intended to kill him. Four days later, authorities informed his family that he was dead.

After Beheshti's death, security forces warned his family not to talk to media outlets, and security agents threatened to arrest Beheshti's sister if the family did not sign a consent form regarding the circumstances of his death, his mother said in an interview with the Persian service of German radio Deutsche Welle.

BLOOD-STAINED SHROUD

The family was also offered diye, or blood money, but Beheshti's mother, Gohar Eshqi, refused. When the family was allowed to see Beheshti's body, they noticed that blood from his knee and head had stained the burial shroud.

"They killed him and handed me back his body," Eshqi said in an interview with the pro-opposition Saham News website.

On December 13, a small crowd of friends, neighbors and family gathered to commemorate the fortieth day after Beheshti's death at his gravesite. The previous day security agents tore up notices about the ceremony in the neighborhood, Beheshti's sister Sahar told Kalame, another opposition website.

Videos of the event posted online show Eshqi, Beheshti's mother, holding his picture and shouting "I'm proud of my son" and "My son's killers must be executed." Police later attacked the crowd and beat Eshqi, wounding her leg, Sahar said.

Kalame published pictures of Eshqi's injuries.

Few Iranians could have predicted that Beheshti's death would make any waves. But the Internet buzz kept building. Websites linked with the opposition Green Movement took up the cause and published details of his detention and physical abuse. That led even conservative bloggers to speak out, concerned that the case would damage the image of the Islamic Republic.

The cyber police, a unit within the Iranian police force, was created in January 2011 with a relatively broad mandate.

While the Revolutionary Guards and Intelligence Ministry do their own web surveillance, the cyber police are mainly responsible for tracking down dissidents online.

They are also responsible for blocking websites with controversial content and for pursuing cases of web sabotage.

Earlier this year, new cyber police guidelines directed all Internet cafes to install cameras to monitor customers.

But in Beheshti's case, little sophisticated surveillance was necessary - he was blogging openly under his own name.

OUTRAGE AT HOME AND ABROAD

The affair has drawn international attention, with the United Nations, the United States and several other countries calling for an impartial investigation into Beheshti's death.

In Iran, Ahmadinejad's political foes smelled an opening.

"Foreign governments have raised an uproar about this issue. Why don't the foreign ministry and the judiciary explain the issue?" Ahmad Tavakoli, a parliamentarian from Tehran and one of Ahmadinejad's foremost opponents, said on November 11.

"A death has happened and there must be an explanation."

The outcry about Beheshti in Iran's majles, or parliament, may be linked partly to next year's presidential election.

A disputed 2009 election, in which Ahmadinejad was declared the winner, led to widespread violence and a loss of faith in the political system among some voters.

Shining a spotlight on Beheshti's death is an opportunity to restore confidence in the system and reassure Iranians that the government operates in a transparent and just fashion.

Hadi Ghaemi, director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, said the authorities were sensitive about their domestic image. "They want to say: 'Yes, we have a working system,' to say: 'Look, one bad apple committed a crime and we are going to make sure whoever is responsible is going to pay.'"

No clarity has yet emerged.

On November 12, the committee for national security and foreign affairs in the majles held a hearing on Beheshti's death with members of the national police force present. At the end of the session, the head of the committee, Alaeddin Borujerdi, said the evidence showed no marks of abuse or torture on Beheshti's body.

Only a few hours later on the same day, Mohseni-Ejehi, the attorney-general, announced that the official medical examiner had noted bruises in five places on Beheshti's body.

The shockwaves from his death rumble on.

After the dismissal of the cyber police chief, Mohammad Hassan Shokrian, on December 1, many hardliners complained that the regime had caved to pressure from the media and foreigners.

Ghaemi said ordinary Iranians who fell foul of the security services risked much harsher treatment than those with some name recognition, but that Beheshti's case marked a milestone.

"It has become a very important issue in terms of discourse between members of parliament, the political class and the judiciary," he said.

"It shows to me that the culture of human rights is really taking root in Iran - that they can't cover it up and run away like they did before."

(Editing by Alistair Lyon and Peter Graff)

Muslim Brotherhood's Constitution Now Law

Dec. 26, 2012

By Tamim Elyan

CAIRO | Wed Dec 26, 2012 4:15am EST

(Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi has signed into law a new Islamist-drafted constitution he says will help end political turmoil and allow him to focus on fixing the fragile economy.

Anxiety about the deepening economic crisis has gripped Egypt in past weeks, with many people rushing to take out their savings from banks and the government imposing new restrictions to reduce capital flight.

Results announced on Tuesday showed Egyptians had approved the text with an overwhelming 63.8 percent, paving the way for a parliamentary election in about two months.

The win gives Islamists their third straight electoral victory since veteran autocrat Hosni Mubarak was toppled in a 2011 revolution, following their earlier wins in parliamentary and presidential elections.

The presidency said Mursi signed a decree enforcing the charter late on Tuesday after the official announcement of the result of a referendum approving the basic law, Egypt's first constitution since Mubarak's overthrow.

The text has sharpened painful divisions in the Arab world's most populous nation and prompted often violent protests on the streets of Cairo.

Opposition groups condemn the new basic law as too Islamist and undemocratic, saying it could allow clerics to intervene in the lawmaking process and leave minority groups without proper legal protection.

But Mursi, catapulted into power by his Islamist allies, believes adopting the text is key to ending a protracted period of turmoil and uncertainty that has wrecked the economy.

He argues the constitution offers enough protection to all groups, saying many Egyptians are fed up with street protests that have prevented a return to normality and distracted the government from focusing on the economy.

An atmosphere of crisis has deepened in Egypt since the vote, with many Egyptians rushing to take out cash from banks and hoarding hard currency savings at home.

Sharpening people's concerns, the authorities imposed currency controls to prevent capital flight. Leaving or entering Egypt with more than $10,000 cash is now banned.

Rocked by often violent protests in the run up to the two-stage referendum this month, Cairo was calm, with only a small group of protesters burning tires overnight.

Mursi's government says its opponents are damaging the economy by prolonging political upheaval. It has pledged to impose unpopular tax increases and spending cuts to win a loan package from the International Monetary Fund.

Adding to the government's long list of worries, Communications Minister Hany Mahmoud resigned from his post citing his "inability to adapt to the government's working culture".

The United States, which provides billions of dollars a year in military and other support for Egypt and sees it as a pillar of security in the Middle East, called on Egyptian politicians to bridge divisions and on all sides to reject violence.

"President Mursi, as the democratically elected leader of Egypt, has a special responsibility to move forward in a way that recognizes the urgent need to bridge divisions," State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said.

(Writing by Maria Golovnina; Editing by Jon Boyle)

Attention Wayward Teens: A ´dad´ is tenth most popular Christmas list request for children

Christmas Day, 2012

A 'dad' is tenth most popular Christmas list request for children with youngsters happy to forgo the latest iPad, toy or new pet, a survey has found.

Children asked for a new sibling, pet or a 'dad' for Christmas, a survey has shown

When it comes to Christmas, it might be safe to assume children will ask Santa for an extensive list of toys, games and treats.

But a survey of their typical lists for Father Christmas has shown many have more serious concerns, requesting "a dad" instead.

A study of 2,000 British parents found most children will put a new baby brother or sister at the top of their Christmas list, closely followed by a request for a real-life reindeer.

A "pet horse" was the third most popular choice, with a "car" making a bizarre entry at number four.

Despite their material requests, the tenth most popular Christmas wish on the list was a "Dad".


The survey, of consumers at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City, found children aged three to 12 years also wanted a dog, chocolate and a stick of rock.

Traditional hopes for a white Christmas were represented by a wish for "snow" in ninth place, with sensible youngsters also requesting a "house".

Of the top 50 festive requests, 17 related to pets and animals, with some imaginative children hoping for a donkey, chicken and elephant.

iPhones and iPads also appeared on the list, with some quirky children asking for the moon, a time machine, a pond cover and beetroot. One child asked for Eva Longoria and another wanted Harry Styles from One Direction.

A request for a "mum" reached number 23 on the list.


Source: UK Telegraph

Piers Morgan Deportation Petition Reaches 49,000 Signatures, White House Must Respond

Christmas Day, 2012

The petition to deport CNN host Piers Morgan for his recent comments on gun control has reached over 49,000 signatures as of this posting, which will force the White House to respond. The petition, created Friday, needed 25,000 signatures within 30 days for the White House to take action and it’s reached far more than that in a mere three days.

In case you missed it, the petition called for Morgan to be deported for his “hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution.” Gun advocates are angry about Morgan’s comments calling for increased gun legislation in America and are accusing him of wanting to “undermine the Bill of Rights.”

Morgan has aggressively responded to the petition several times on Twitter, most recently Tweeting a video link to a town hall on guns that he hosted last week, with the message, “This is why I’m facing deportation from America” and the hashtag, #GunControlNow.

source: mediaite

Rule of Law: Earth First Journal Assassination Hit List

Christmas Day, 2012

(PJMedia) - The latest newsletter from the environmentalist group Earth First! Journal contains a curious topic — assassinations.

In fact, the newsletter conveniently provides the names, addresses and phone numbers of the assassination targets. Naturally, none of this is to be taken seriously, the environmentalists tell us. From the newsletter:

Let us say clearly, this is not a call to undertake assassinations of the elite scum who are pillaging the planet and enslaving the populace — but not because we think that is a bad idea. And it’s also not because we think killing CEOs and lobbyists is negative PR either. In fact, most everyone hates these creeps, and many would applaud their demise. Some would even be so enthusiastic as to make a bid on the assassin’s old underwear if given the chance in a government auction, as we found out last year, when the State sold off Ted’s personal belongings to further enrich the family of Unabomber victim Thomas J. Mosser, executive of corporate marketing giants Burson Marsteller.

We are not calling for the assassinations of CEOs and lobbyists primarily because those assholes are disposable and replaced with relative ease. Whereas eco-revolutionaries like us are still far and few between, and someone getting popped on that sort of charge it could pull them out of the game for a long time. So instead, until the police state and prison industrial complex is weakened, thus leveling the battlefield a bit more, we propose a campaign of “prank assassinations.”

And who are the suggested targets of the Earth First! Journal assassination campaign? Members of the productive class, of course, fill the “Hit List.” Aubrey McClendon, CEO of Chesapeake Energy, is listed because his company has developed more efficient methods of developing cheap natural gas.

Aubrey McClendon

Armando Olivera is on the “Hit List” because his company has proposed a new power plant. Russ Girling, the CEO of TransCanada, is “pillaging” tar sands in Alberta and is putting up wind farms in Maine (endangering a couple of lynx). To round out the “Hit List,” Earth First! Journal names conservative blogger Brandon Darby.

Brandon Darby

The radical left loathes Darby because he is a heretic — a former leftist who helped the FBI break up a plot to bomb the 2008 Republican Convention in Minneapolis. That’s why loony publications like Mother Jones refer to him as a “snitch.”

Surely the FBI will find it difficult to track down the origins of these threats, right? Earth First is one of several shadowy fringe environmental groups that engage in the euphemism “direct action” but have no centralized structure. So finding the author of these threats is probably impossible, right?

Except that the author of the assassination list provided contact information:

Earth First! Journal • PO Box 964, Lake Worth, FL 33460 (561) 249-2071

Will the FBI alert the targets on the “hit list”? Will Eric Holder make any inquiry about those publishing threats against utility executives and citizens helping his own FBI save lives?

Edward M. Kennedy Jr. will not run for Senate

Christmas Day, 2012

Merry Christmas: Democrats could face ugly primary fight :)

Edward M. Kennedy Jr., 51, a Connecticut lawyer and son of the late US Senator Edward M. Kennedy, confirmed Monday that he would not be a candidate in a special election.

The decision by Edward M. Kennedy Jr. on Monday to pass on a run for US Senate in Massachusetts in 2013 eliminates one of the few Democrats with the star power to ward off serious challengers within his own party, increasing the odds of a tough Democratic primary fight that could damage the eventual nominee.

Three Democratic congressmen, Edward Markey of Malden, Michael Capuano of Somerville, and Stephen Lynch of South Boston, have signaled interest in running for the Senate in a special election, for a seat expected to open with the nomination of Senator John Kerry to lead the State Department. None of the congressmen has declared a run.

“I think people were waiting to see what Teddy would do,” said Philip W. Johnston, a former chair of the Massachusetts Democratic Party.

Kennedy, 51, a Connecticut lawyer and son of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, confirmed Monday that he would not be a candidate in the Bay State, which his father represented in Washington for nearly 50 years.


“As a health care lawyer and disability rights activist who was raised to believe in public service, I have always had an interest in public policy development, advocacy, and political action,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Although I have a strong desire to serve in public office, I consider Connecticut to be my home, and hope to have the honor to serve at another point in my future.”

A source familiar with his decision said Kennedy did not want to uproot his family and that he was uncomfortable about moving from Connecticut to Massachusetts to run. The source also said that officials in Connecticut had urged him to stay and run there eventually.

Kerry, the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is expected to be easily confirmed by the Senate as the next secretary of state. Under Massachusetts law, Governor Deval Patrick will appoint a temporary senator to fill Kerry’s seat, and the state will hold a special election in 145 to 160 days — probably around June — to fill the remainder of Kerry’s term, which runs through 2014.

Republican US Senator Scott Brown, defeated in November by Democrat Elizabeth Warren, is a potential candidate in 2013. Brown won his seat in a 2010 special election after Senator Kennedy died in office. Brown has not said if he will run again; his 2012 campaign manager, Jim Barnett, could not be reached for comment.

Democrats worry that Brown would be difficult to beat in another special election, in which turnout would probably be far lower than 2012, which included a presidential race. Warren topped Brown by eight percentage points.

“It’s a question of whether you get a turnout skewed to small towns and rural areas of Massachusetts, which is what Brown had in 2010,” said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist who studies US Senate races. “Or the traditional Democratic vote, which ousted Brown and elected Warren.”

Jennifer Duffy, an analyst for The Cook Political Report, said that Kennedy Jr. was “by no means the only Democrat who could win,” though his famous political name would have given him a head start. Another Kennedy often mentioned as a potential candidate, the senator’s widow, Vicki Kennedy, has given no sign she is interested in running.

Without a Kennedy in the race, “I think the immediate impact is a crowded and messy primary,” said Duffy. “A messy primary bodes well for Brown, assuming he runs, as it may produce a bruised nominee.”

One other potential candidate for Democrats, former US Representative Martin Meehan, of Lowell, on Monday shot down speculation that he would run for the Senate in 2013. Meehan, who still has $4.7 million in his campaign account after serving in the House from 1993-2007, is chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

“Things are going really, really well and I’m fully engaged in the transformation of UMass Lowell,” Meehan said in an interview. “I’m really not interested [in running for Senate]. I think the Congress is pretty dysfunctional right now. It’s not appealing to want to be part of the dysfunction.”

Meehan said that Brown would be tough to beat if he runs again. “Democrats should try to unite behind a candidate because I think a divisive primary would be very difficult for Democrats,” said Meehan.

Johnston suggested that Markey, first elected in 1976, would be the likely nominee if he decides to run, and would bring “experience and formidable resources” to the campaign. “It seems to me the other potential candidates are now awaiting his decision.”

A spokesperson for Markey had “nothing new to report” on Monday. A Capuano statement said that “the congressman is spending the holidays with friends and family, he will continue talking with them about his future plans,” which is almost exactly the same statement he issued last week. A Lynch spokesperson could not be reached.

Sitting members of the US House have particular incentive to seek the Senate seat in a 2013 special election — if they were to lose, they would still be members of Congress, able to run for reelection as highly favored incumbents in 2014.

source: Boston Globe