For more than 10 years in Wisconsin, Democratic Party legislators and
advocates have been fighting for gravely ill individuals. In this
session, rather than giving these people the courtesy of listening to
their stories, a few powerful legislators are using their positions and
mistruths to keep affordable medicine out of the hands of those who need
it the most. Meanwhile, our opioid abuse and resulting heroin crisis
here in Wisconsin continues to escalate.
Medical marijuana for pain management for some patients could be a
less harmful and safer alternative for individuals who would normally be
prescribed opioids and be at greater risk of addiction. According to a
recent study—“Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Mortality”—which appeared
in the Journal of the American Medical Association, opioid
overdose deaths were reduced by 25% in states with effective medical
marijuana laws. As policy makers, we are willing to pass bill after bill
in an effort to get a handle on the opioid crisis in our communities,
but when it comes to legalizing marijuana for seriously ill patients to
manage pain and other debilitating health conditions, we cannot even get
a public hearing on this issue in the Republican-controlled
legislature.
Wisconsin lags behind most of the nation on this issue. Twenty-nine
other states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical
marijuana, including all four of our neighboring states (Michigan,
Minnesota, Illinois and Iowa). Veterans’ organizations, including the
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and The American Legion, have passed
resolutions supporting medical marijuana for veterans with posttraumatic
stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), chronic pain and
other injuries incurred while in military service. Veterans’ Affairs
(VA) data show that one-third of all veterans in their care received
opioids for pain management. Sadly, data also show that VA patients had
nearly twice the rate of fatal accidental overdoses than adults in the
general population.
A Growing Need
The patient population who could greatly benefit from legalizing
medical marijuana continues to grow and the support in our state and
nationally is overwhelming. How is it that, when 89% of the nation
supports legalizing medical marijuana, Republican leadership in our
state continues to refuse to hear the public on the issue by giving our
legislation a public hearing? Perhaps they are in the grips of the big
pharmaceutical industry that fears legalizing marijuana for medical
purposes will cut into their fat corporate profits. Perhaps it’s their
own beliefs and biases. None of these excuses make up for failing to
provide a treatment option for Wisconsinites that seriously ill patients
have access to in 29 other states. This is treatment that cancer
patients and veterans can receive; treatment that patients dealing with
painful illnesses can receive instead of opting for addictive, harmful
opioids. But it’s also treatment that is currently denied to every
citizen of Wisconsin.
It is our hope that the personal biases and excuses that have driven
this bill into the ground for the last decade can experience the swell
of support we know exists for medical marijuana as a treatment option
for patients when their physicians approve. It is our hope that, this
time, common sense and human dignity will win.
State Sen. Jon Erpenbach and Rep. Chris Taylor are co-authors of
the medical marijuana bill, Senate Bill 38/Assembly Bill 75, that has
come before the Wisconsin Legislature.
A
family in Skowhegan, Maine, is searching for a new place to house their
developmentally disabled 34-year-old son after he was evicted from a
federally funded group home for using medical marijuana to help calm
seizures. The man’s mother told the Portland Herald that a doctor
prescribed the marijuana to help control symptoms of a neuromuscular
disease from which he also suffers.
Vermont count: 5 dispensaries and 4,600 patients
Vermont
officials have awarded a fifth medical marijuana dispensary and
cultivation license to an applicant that will have locations in St.
Albans and Bennington. The Times Argus reported the Waterbury-based PhytoScience Institute
would start dispensing medical marijuana within six months after it
gets full approval. The Vermont Department of Public Safety said there
were 4,609 patients registered for medical marijuana as of Aug. 24.
State law will allow for a sixth dispensary when there are 7,000
registered patients.
Use it, don’t smoke it
The
board of supervisors of Louisiana’s Southern University’s has selected a
vendor to run its medical marijuana program. Lafayette-based Advanced Biomedics, LLC,
will be licensed to grow pharmaceutical-grade marijuana for patients
with cancer, HIV/AIDS, wasting syndrome, seizure disorders, epilepsy,
spasticity, Crohn’s disease, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis.
Under the law, marijuana can be available in medicinal oils, pills,
sprays and topical applications, but cannot be sold in a form that can
be smoked.
Was the judge high?
Kentucky’s ban on medical
marijuana has survived an initial court test, with a judge ruling the
state has good reason to “curtail citizens’ possession of a narcotic,
hallucinogenic drug.” Twenty-nine other states have legalized marijuana
in some way, the most common being for medical purposes. While Kentucky
lawmakers have embraced hemp — the fibers of the plant that are used to
make rope, clothing and other products — and other uses for the cannabis
plant, they have resisted a number of proposals that would let people
use marijuana as medicine.
Albert Einstein’s
handwritten theory of happiness sold for $1.3 million at a recent
auction in Jerusalem. Einstein wrote the theory of happiness, not nearly
as famous as the one about relatively, on a note he gave to a bellboy
in 1922. Lacking the money for a tip, Einstein wrote in German, “A calm
and modest life brings more happiness than the pursuit of success with
constant restlessness.” Bidding opened at $2,000. Another note to the
bellboy, “Where there’s a will there’s a way,” sold at auction for more
than $200,000.
Are you there — God? It’s me, Mark
Actor
Mark Wahlberg, who in 2015 hosted an event honoring Pope Francis, told
the Chicago Tribune he hopes God forgives him for portraying porn star
Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights. Wahlberg was in Chicago for an
event with Cardinal Blase Cupich. He told the Trib he hoped “God is a
movie fan and also forgiving.” Now, WiGWag recalls the film touched upon
God’s ways. “Heaven sent you here to this place, Dirk Diggler. You’ve
been blessed,” said Jack Horner, the Burt Reynolds’ character who
discovered Dirk Diggler in 17-year-old Eddie Adams.
No more knock, knock?
Amazon
Key is expected to launch later this month. Consumers can place their
orders and then arrange for delivery inside their homes. But first,
shoppers must buy a camera and Wi-Fi connected lock from Amazon, which
retails for about $250. When using Amazon Key, the delivery person’s
arrival triggers the camera to record and the door to unlock. That’s
putting a new twist on home shopping and home delivery.
Yes, airman, there is a Santa Claus
At
a time when news outlets dedicate teams of reporters to identifying
fake news and correcting very prominent liars, we don’t know what to
make of this report. So we’ll make light. The Air Force says its tweet
declaring Santa Claus “isn’t real” was a bluff, part of a threat to
steal Christmas from bases in North Dakota and Missouri. The bases were
debating via Twitter about which had the better fleet when a tweet
appeared on the official Air Force account. It said if the bases didn’t
get along, Santa would “bring you nothing this year because he isn’t
real!” Later, the Air Force retracted that statement. Of course Santa is
real, and his sleigh is tracked every year by the North American
Defense Command.
Eyes not on the road
An Oklahoma
sheriff’s deputy found himself on a slippery slope when he stopped a man
and discovered the driver was wearing only a bikini thong and was
covered in Vaseline, according to The Smoking Gun. A pornographic
magazine in the passenger seat suggested the man wasn’t driving with
both hands on the wheel. He was charged with speeding and driving on a
license that was revoked in 1985.
Cowabunga, man
A Florida
surfboard-maker was bummed out in 1981 when someone stole a board on
which he’d painted a life-size rendering of Superman. He alerted the
surfing community but heard nothing for decades. Then, in July, he
received an email from a dude in Maine who’d found a log matching the
description and bearing his signature. The board was reunited with its
old carp, but we’re guessing Superman has seen its last gnarly wave and
will live out the years as wall-hanger.
This queen has a kick
Claire
Jeffress nailed a 30-yard field goal for the Dawson High School
football team in Pearland, Texas, cementing a victory against a major
rival. The feat came just a week after the senior was crowned homecoming
queen. “My team had faith in me, and they were going to block for me,
and the snap and the hold were going to be good, so I just had to do my
job,” she told the Houston Chronicle. Jeffress also is on the school
soccer team.
He must have been high
Police
in Allentown, Pennsylvania, arrested a man who told them he’d broken
into a market so he could get money to pay his court fines for marijuana
possession. Now he faces burglary, criminal trespass and criminal
mischief charges.
Easy scoop
A New Jersey newspaper scored
an easy scoop when a Corvette crashed into its newsroom. The Press of
Atlantic City reported the driver fell asleep before driving through an
intersection, jumping a curb, traveling about 75 feet and then slamming
into the newspaper’s office. The accident shattered two windows and
knocked over several filing cabinets, but no one was hurt.
Plaque of dishonor
The producers of Legends of Tomorrow
placed a “plaque of dishonor” in the parking lot of NBC’s Burbank,
California, studios at the spot where Donald Trump made his predatory
comments about women on the Access Hollywood bus. “On this spot
in September 2005, Donald J. Trump bragged about committing sexual
assault,” the plaque read. “In November 2016, he was elected President
of the United States.” The plaque was removed 15 minutes after its
installation, according to CNN.
Good morning everyone how are you doing? I hope everyone is doing well today. It is going to be a very busy day for me with errands to do and go pick up my daughter from Whitewater college to spend her birthday with her tomorrow. Here are your questions for today.
1) Have you ever drove the wrong way on a side street or the highway?
2) When was the last time you remember doing that?
3) When was the last time you remember being in a car accident?
4) When was the last time you have gotten a ticket from the police?
I was getting on the elevator this morning when a 3 X 5 card on the bulletin board caught my eye: "Free. Wicker Furniture. Wicker Loveseat and Wicker Chair. 63X-XXXX." I went back into my apartment and called the number. I got her voicemail. I left a message stating that I was stepping out for a bit, but I definitely was interested in the furniture. When I got home, there was a message on my machine from "Linda" stating that I was the first and only to respond to any of the cards so far. She said if I want the furniture, it's mine. I went to her apartment to look at the furniture and it was beautiful. She even helped carry the loveseat to my apartment. She said she had too much furniture in her apartment. It's just gorgeous. I wonder if Charlie will want to scratch on the wicker?
According to CCAP, Monte Osterman still owes the city nearly $2,000. He was also involved in bid rigging that benefited his company and all the usual crimes that lying John's pals committed. How much profit do you make off of a hat store? Maybe $15 a day? Who's going to pay Monte's bills? More importantly, who is going to investigate and prosecute the corruption in Racine? Lying John's friends are pigs who expect everything for free. Those pieces of shit perjured themselves for lying John's sake. They should all be thrown in pig pens.
I remember when lying John claimed that Beth, I, and others were involved in a "political conspiracy" against him. Jeez, man, I was just joking around.
Take care of yourself, Beth. Thank you for everything you've done for Racine. The mayor should declare Racine Uncovered Day.
"North Korean soldiers and their families are being treated in a
military hospital for radiation exposure after the September hydrogen
bomb test at the Punggye-ri nuclear facility.
"More than a thousand
troops of the North Korean army were deployed to the site to dig
tunnels and patrol the surrounding area, Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun reported Wednesday, citing anonymous sources with knowledge of North Korean affairs.
"The news comes after reports in the Japanese press indicated that around 200 people died in an accident at the facility due to a tunnel collapse in October.
"After reporting a series of small earthquakes
and a landslide in the area near where the facility is located, south
of the Mantapsan mountain, several experts have warned that the site has
become too unstable to host further nuclear experiments. Another bomb
test would risk a massive collapse and radioactive leaks, Chinese geologists warned.
"According to researchers writing for the North Korea monitoring website 38 North, North Korean scientists were unlikely to abandon the site altogether, trying instead to build new underground tunnels to move the test facility to another part of the mountain.
"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reacts with members of the Korean
People's Army in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean
Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 15. More than a thousand troops were
deployed to the nuclear test facility in Punggye-ri, sources told a
Japanese newspaper. KCNA/via Reuters
"Concerns
over radiation leaks from the North Korean nuclear test site continue
to grow in Japan, a country that has suffered enormously from the
consequences of nuclear bombs from world War II and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
"According
to the Asahi newspaper report, a computer simulation of possible leaks
of radioactive materials ran by the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and
Technology (KIOST) showed that meteorological conditions at the time of
North Korea’s nuclear test would have allowed for radioactive materials
to carry into the atmosphere in a northeastern direction.
"They would affect a wide area touching upon Russia, the Kuril Islands and the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.
"South
Korean, Chinese and Japanese authorities recorded no abnormal radiation
levels in the immediate aftermath of the test. The Japanese Nuclear
Regulation Authority said at the time radioactive substances would not
be released into the atmosphere in case of an underground nuclear test.
"But Chinese nuclear weapons expert Wei Shijie told The Telegraphthat
a nuclear leak was 'inevitable.' He said: 'It is just a matter of time
to detect it, because there are cracks on mountains where radioactive
substances will leak.'"
"The Utah nurse who drew national attention after she was manhandled
and arrested for refusing to let a police detective take blood from an
unconscious patient said Tuesday she had reached a $500,000 settlement
with Salt Lake City and the university that runs her hospital.
"Nurse
Alex Wubbels and her attorney, Karra Porter, announced the settlement
in a late-afternoon news conference outside the Salt Lake City Police
Department, two months after they released body camera footage showing detective Jeff Payne handcuffing her and shoving her into a squad car as she screamed in protest.
"The exact
terms of the agreement were confidential, but Porter told The
Washington Post that it covered 'all potential defendants' involved
in the incident. That included the University of Utah, Salt Lake City
police and several individual security officers from the university
who were present for Wubbels’s arrest but declined to intervene, Porter
said.
"Wubbels and Porter were considering filing a civil rights
lawsuit, but the settlement now precludes that. The nurse had previously
stressed that her main concern was protecting hospital staff and
preventing the same conflict from happening again."
Hi, gang! How are you? I hope you're staying warm in this turn towards winter. Senor Zanza has cold feet in the bed. He holds them against me to warm them. I don't appreciate such acts. I tell him to wear socks to bed, but he says then he can't fall asleep because he still feels "dressed." One of these nights I'm going to wear my shoes to bed. Then when Senor Zanza applies his cold tootsies to me, I can give him a kick in the can.
Uh, the Packers. Well, I don't want to seem like a fair weather fan, but I gave up when Aaron Rodgers broke his collar bone. He broke his other one a couple of years ago. I remember someone commenting when Green Bay was first negotiating with Rodgers that he is injury prone. 23 screws. They should have let me treat him. I'd have grabbed some aliens from a nearby planet and let them work their healing powers on him. He'd be throwing the football the next day. Anyway, the Packers host Detroit on Monday night, November 6 at 8:30 PM. Go Packers....
Here are the standings from the Irregular Football League:
Something is real wrong here. How did I drop to 4th place and how did Mr. OrbsCorbs get up to 6th? Grrrr......
It looks more and more like Donald Trump received help from Russia in his presidential campaign. Why can't suits ever play fair? Trump's entire administration so far has been a cruel joke on the American people. As soon as an allegation is made against Trump, he tries to change the conversation to someone else's misbehavior. He is child-like that way. Holy Twittering Tweets, Batman! We have a kid running the most powerful nation on Earth. He likes to tweet. Unfortunately, one-liners and attacks on perceived enemies will not lift this great nation. I am ashamed that he is our president, and I would be just as ashamed had Hillary won. Between the Democrats and the Republicans, I don't know who lies the most.
It is noted in today's Journal Times that Copacetic, a hat store downtown with close connections to lying John, is going out of business. Perhaps she has to help her husband hide his ties to and $ from lying John. Monte Osterman has benefited from some real bid-rigging. He has stolen thousands of our tax dollars for his personal use. Pig.
The city continues on with its plans for Machinery Rowboat and the events center. Also, the old theater in Uptown. Ha-ha! Our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will have to pay for all this stuff. We don't care. We're drunken sailors with a load of someone else's loot. We also have some imported felons working for the city who know how to get things done.
Build a bridge from Hwy31 to I-94. Call it the John Dickert lie way. Only express traffic allowed. Do it. Foxconn will pay for it.
Don't forget: Foxconn will fix everything. They are our saviors who only want a few billion dollars from us.
I love you all. Slowly now the pressure will build as we head into the holidays. Take some time for yourself. Buy yourself something. Try not to drink too much. Stop by for Christmas cookies anytime.
_______________________________ Please donate: paypal.me/jgmazelis If you don't like PayPal, send me a note at madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com and I'll send you my street address so you can send a check or money order. Thank you
I’m Art Kumbalek and man oh manischewitz what a world,
ain’a? So I hear this BBC TV documentary about gun violence is causing
quite the stir around the town. What the fock, too many guns in
Milwaukee? Hey, how ’bout too many guns in the whole damn state, the
whole damn country, for christ sakes.
I’ll tell you’s, this weekend I’m investing that extra hour we get
from the daylight saving time into my campaign for Badgerland governor
’cause after I knock off Gov. Snidely Whiplash in the election, my first
order of business will be to change our State Motto from “Forward” to
“Duck!!!” Ba-ding!
Second order of business for Gov. Kumbalek will be to flip the State
Bird at anyone who buys the notion that Guns & Plenty is a healthy
alternative to a diet of common focking sense. And third order of biz
will be to dash off a note to the N(o) R(ationality) A(ssociation) on
official governor stationery. The note will contain this constitutional
clarification: The Second Amendment mentions a “well regulated militia”
but not a word about “well-armed village idiots.”
Then, following all that business and provided I hadn’t been already
either called to higher office or called home to the lord by way of
ricochet, I may toy with the idea that besides members of law
enforcement and the military, the only state citizen to be legally
allowed to focking traipse around with a holstered heater would be Gov.
Kumbalek—a Gov. Kumbalek empowered not only to make a citizen’s arrest
but empowered to make a citizen’s execution, to boot. And I already got a
list, buddy; you betcha, I got a list, I kid you not.
Thirty-first Year On the Job Full Disclosure: So the
other day I was going through my That Time of Year file, and I saw that
we got the holidays coming up like a bad burrito, so I thought maybe I
ought to go get a nice haircut for the season—since I’ve always been a
big believer in the notion that when you look good, you feel good. But
instead, I figured I’d keep my hat on and save the buck two-eighty I’d
have dropped at the barber’s and instead visit the Uptowner tavern/charm
school and invest my hard-earned dough in support of an even more
foolproof notion than the one I just mentioned, which is: When you drink
good, you feel good.
I ordered an ice-cold bottle of Pabst Blue Ribbon and wouldn’t you
know, sort of like Marcel focking Proust when he took a bite from a
piece of tea-soaked toast those years ago, I took one sip from the PBR
and involuntarily the past became present and the present, past.
And so I remembered that haircuts are stupid ’cause after you get
one, there is no way not to look like an absolute dick—if not the second
you climb out of the chair, then five-10-15 years down the road when
some kid sees a photo of you with that haircut and says, “Jeez, he
actually wanted his haircut to look like that? What a dick.”
And that’s why I always wear the orange hat. No one can see what kind
of haircut I’m sportin’ ’cause the one thing a guy who’s big in the
public eye like me can least afford is to look like a dick. Sure, an
Adolf Hitler was able to pull off looking like a dick and yet maintain
some kind of credibility with his crowd, but that was 80-90 years ago
for christ sakes, back when people were more accepting of the “dick
look” worn by members of their families or race than they are in today’s
hopped-up fashion-crammed times.
Back then, seems to me most people maintained a quaintly cavalier
attitude toward the importance of fashion. It was what was underneath
the bad haircut and crappy taste in wardrobe—not the other way
around—that was cause for concern, that got one’s dander up to go grab
the lickin’ stick.
And…I forgot my point, what the fock. But speaking of remembrance, I
am reminded of a little story, perhaps to bring some cheer to those I
know could stand a little cheer, lo, these days:
Two elderly ladies had been friends for many decades. Over the
years they had shared all kinds of activities and adventures. Lately,
their activities had been limited to meeting a few times a week to play
cards.
So, the other day during a round of Canasta one looked at the
other and said, “Now don’t get mad at me...I know we've been friends for
a long time...but I just can’t think of your name! I’ve thought and
thought, but I can’t remember it. This is so embarrassing, but please
tell me what your name is.” Her friend raised her eyebrows, and after a
couple, three minutes she cleared her throat and said, “Oh my. How soon
do you need to know?”
Ba-ding! ’cause I’m Art Kumbalek and I told you so.
"About 200 people are feared dead in North Korea
after underground tunnels at a nuclear test site that was feared to be
unstable reportedly collapsed, crushing 100 people in the initial
cave-in and 100 others when the tunnels again gave way on top of
rescuers.
"The collapse at the Punggye-ri test site on Oct. 10 occurred while people were doing construction on the underground tunnel, Japan’s Asahi TV
reported, citing a source in North Korea. The television station also
said North Korea’s sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3 most likely caused the
tunnel to crumble and created serious damage in the region.
"No officials have confirmed the Japanese TV station’s
claims, but experts have feared for more than a month that the test site
was on the verge of crumbling since the nuclear blast. North Korea said
it detonated a hydrogen bomb, calling it a 'perfect success.' It was
the country’s most powerful bomb tested to date and the blast was
reportedly 10 times more powerful than the nuclear bomb that was dropped
over Hiroshima at the end of World War II.
"The test triggered a 6.3-magnitude earthquake that day and multiple
tremors have been detected from the area since then. Satellite images
obtained by 38 North,
which specializes in North Korea issues, showed several landslides
occurred after the Sept. 3 test. Also a possible 'collapse chimney
crater' was seen on Mount Mantap, possibly caused by the underground
tests. "It’s unclear if the mountain will collapse in the near
future, but the report said there was 'significant cracking' and 'irreversible strain' on the land because of the nuclear test. "Some experts also said Mantap was suffering from 'tired mountain syndrome' due to the stress on the ground, the Washington Post reported.
Chinese scientists have also warned the mountain could collapse and
release radiation. Radioactive xenon-133 was detected in South Korea
after the test.
"Additionally on Tuesday, North Korea rebuked Trump and the U.S.,
saying 'the Trump group's vicious vituperation against the DPRK is an
expression of their frustration, fear and horror,' according to a
statement released by state-run Korean Central News Agency. The day
before, the Hermit Kingdom blamed Trump’s 'extreme, direct and long
threats' for driving them to obtain 'complete nuclear deterrence.' "'The U.S. has to ponder over the possible consequences,' the statement said."
It would really help me until the end of the week. If you're so inclined, there's a "CONTRIBUTE" link on the sidebar, just below Features. It accepts credit cards, debit cards, and bank transfers. I'd really appreciate it. Thank you.
"Heidi Sorrem and her husband, Corey, talk about their trip from their
Greenfield, Wis., home to a Mexico resort in Sept. 2016 to celebrate
their 10th wedding anniversary. After a couple of shots they both
blacked out and Heidi ended up in a hospital.
Mike De Sisti/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel"
"The young woman behind the desk at the
police station in Playa del Carmen toggled between her cellphone and
computer, Snapchatting with friends and scrolling through Facebook, as
she asked the young man from Boston whether he had ever enjoyed sex.
"How
that was relevant, he didn’t know. He was at the police department in
the small Mexican city south of Cancun to report that he had just been
drugged and raped while receiving a massage at a world-renowned resort
and spa.
"The young man was told that the woman —
Claudia, as he recalls — was a psychologist. They sat in a windowless
room and after a while she handed him some paper and told him to draw
some pictures. No stick figures. As detailed as possible.
"A tree. A man. A woman. Aperson trapped in the rain without an umbrella.
"Now
draw your family, she said. The 29-year-old man broke down. All he
wanted to do was to get home, see his family. The senseless questions
and exercises were too much.
Raquel Rutledge gives us an update on her investigation on tainted
alcohol at Mexican resorts and the news that Senator Ron Johnson has
called for an investigation into the death of a Pewaukee woman.
"But he had to stay — had to endure a four-hour
psychological test, a humiliating physical exam and then miss his flight
home — if he had any hope of getting justice and stopping the
perpetrator from harming anyone else.
"He drew the picture.
"Three
months later, there’s no sign of justice; no indication Mexican police
pursued the case. The man is back home, struggling through the emotional
aftermath.
"The despair and frustration he’s
facing are familiar to dozens of vacationers who have been victimized at
upscale, all-inclusive Mexican resorts."
Let's start doing something about other countries that constantly provoke us. How about we stop all trade with Mexico until they clean up this resort/booze scam? Oh wait, how about they stop their people from stealing into our country, too? What the fuck? It seems to me that Mexico hates our guts but wants our money. Fuck them. Act like human beings first.
"WASHINGTON (AP) — Major tech
companies plan to tell Congress Tuesday that they have found additional
evidence of Russian activity on their services surrounding the 2016 U.S.
election.
"Facebook, for
instance, says a Russian group posted more than 80,000 times on its
service during and after the election, potentially reaching as many as
126 million users. The company plans to disclose these numbers to the
Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, according to a person familiar
with the testimony. The person declined to be named because the
committee has not officially released the testimony.
"Twitter
plans to tell the same committee that it has uncovered and shut down
2,752 accounts linked to the same group, Russia's Internet Research
Agency, which is known for promoting pro-Russian government positions.
"That
number is nearly 14 times larger than the number of accounts Twitter
handed over to congressional committees three weeks ago, according to a
person familiar with the matter. This person requested anonymity because
they were not authorized to speak publicly about the new findings ahead
of the hearing on Tuesday.
"And
Google announced in a blog post that it found evidence of 'limited'
misuse of its services by the Russian group, as well as some YouTube
channels that were likely backed by Russian agents."
Mayor Michael Tubbs, Photo by Kevin Richtik - Caroline photography
"A two-hour drive from the tech-fueled riches of San
Francisco, Stockton, Calif., is a completely different world from its
Silicon Valley neighbor. But the small city is taking a big bet to try
to fix its lagging economy with a strategy that many of the tech elite
have been largely only pontificating about: universal basic income, or
cash handouts. "In 2013, Stockton became the most populous city in the United States to enter bankruptcy.
The city of 300,000 was toppled when the housing bubble burst, its
basic operating expenses dependent on developer fees and increasing
property tax revenue that never came to bear. "Four years later, Stockton is
still very much struggling. The median household income there is
$44,797, well below California's median household income of $61,818,
according to a statement from the city's 27-year-old mayor, Michael
Tubbs. Stockton's unemployment rate is 7.3 percent, close to double the
4.3 percent national average. One in four residents live below the
poverty line and 18 percent of Stocktonian residents experience food
insecurity. "Mayor Tubbs sees universal basic income as a possible way to alleviate some of the pains of poverty the city is experiencing.
"Tubbs, who was born and raised in Stockton and first elected to city council at 22,
read about the idea of a guaranteed basic income in Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr.'s last book, Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?
In the book, King writes: 'I'm now convinced that the simplest approach
will prove to be the most effective — the solution to poverty is to
abolish it directly by a now widely discussed measure: the guaranteed
income.' "Called the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration
(SEED), Tubbs and the city of Stockton announced their initiative
Wednesday. In the coming six to nine months, SEED will go through a
design period where the city will work with social scientists and
community leaders to determine, among other things, the number of
residents who will be part of the initial test phase of the program and
how to select participants. "Checks of $500 per month are
expected to start being distributed to Stocktonians in the second half
of 2018. The goal is to grow the program as the city can afford to do
so.
"Stockton's SEED program is being funded initially with a $1 million
grant from the Economic Security Project. It's also accepting
crowdfunded donations to the project with a Crowdrise campaign.
The Economic Security Project is an organization aiming to raising
awareness of universal basic income in the United States and is
co-chaired by future of work expert Natalie Foster, Facebook co-founder
Chris Hughes and scholar and leader Dorian T. Warren."
Hell, I got nobody when my kidneys completely fail. I'm glad that the talented young star received a kidney. I don't think the 66 year old man sitting in Racine will get one. I have no blood relatives living in the states that I know of.
And guess what? As I sought to increase my life insurance, no one will accept an applicant with Chronic Kidney Disease. Maybe I should start singing like Selena. They might give me a kidney to shut me up.
"Joseph Oberhansley, a 36-year-old Indiana man, has been deemed
incompetent to stand trial for the alleged rape, murder, and cannibalism
of his ex-girlfriend. According to prosecutors, Oberhansley forcibly
broke into the residence of his ex-girlfriend, 46-year-old Tammy Jo
Blanton, back in September of 2014. Once inside, investigators claim
that the Indiana man sexually assaulted her, stabbed her to death, and
ate parts of her brain, lungs, and heart. "As Daily Mail reports, Clark County Circuit Court Judge
Vicki Carmichael listened to the sworn testimony of three doctors who
individually evaluated Oberhansley on Wednesday before ruling that the
Indiana murder suspect is legally incompetent.
The evaluation of the defendant’s mental state was ordered after a
February motion filed by Oberhansley’s defense lawyers. At the time, the
attorneys claimed that the Indiana man was incapable of understanding
what was happening in court and that he lacked the mental facilities to
help with his own defense. According to his own attorneys, their legal
communication with the Indiana murder suspect had suffered a 'complete
breakdown.'
“He is suspicious, paranoid, uncommunicative, and agitated.”
"Despite the Wednesday ruling, which will allow the state to subject
Oberhansley to a regimen of 'competency restoration' treatments, Clark
County prosecutor Jeremy Mull has vowed that the Indiana murder suspect
will eventually face trial for the unthinkable crimes he is alleged to
have committed.
"As WHAS 11 reports, Prosecutor Mull was 'upset' by the
Wednesday ruling, not just for himself and Indiana authorities, but also
for the family of the victim who will now find justice in the
unthinkable case delayed. According to Mull, it may take as long as 90
days to get the Indiana murder suspect
into the Indiana State Hospital. From there, it may take 90 more days
for Oberhansley’s competence to be re-evaluated, and any necessary
mental health treatment required to “restore competence” to the Indiana
murder suspect will take even longer still.
“Seeing what the family goes through,
the family of the victim, I know the delays in the case are very hard
for them to accept and that’s understandable.”
"The family of victim Tammy Jo Blanton remained silent during
Wednesday’s hearing and were made aware that it could be another six
months (possibly more) before a full mental health evaluation/update is
made available. The evaluations during this week’s court proceedings
remain sealed. Indiana murder suspect Joseph Oberhansley faces murder,
rape, and abuse of a corpse charges and remains behind bars pending
trial and/or release to the Indiana state hospital."
Hello I hope everyone is staying warm this weekend. I have some pictures to share with everyone from our trip up north last weekend. I hope everyone enjoys them.
