Alaska Lawmaker Pushes Back on Washington State over Arctic Drilling Concerns

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KUCB-Kulluk3-5-13If officials in Washington state wind up not allowing Royal Dutch Shell to base its Arctic drilling fleet in Seattle over environmental concerns, members of the Alaska Legislature suggest another business decision for its neighbor to the south.

A resolution, from Alaska House Speaker Mike Chenault, a Republican, suggests public officials in Washington consider closing the Boeing production plant if they are truly concerned with carbon dioxide emissions from commercial activity.

Environmental groups are challenging the Port of Seattle’s decision to lease one of its terminals as a home port for an Arctic oil-drilling fleet. The groups say the port broke state law in signing a lease with Foss Maritime Co. Foss’ client is Royal Dutch Shell PLC. (Read more from “Alaska Lawmaker Pushes Back on Washington State over Arctic Drilling Concerns” HERE)

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The Mufti of Saudi Arabia Passes a Fatwa That a Muslim Can Cannibalize and Eat His Wife

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cm-copyYou heard it correctly. A Fatwa is shared on several prominent news media in the Middle East attributed to the Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, which allows a man to cannibalize and eat his wife.

But “eating the wife” is only permitted under one circumstance, in case the husband is extremely hungry. Translating the piece it says:

“A fatwa attributed to the Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, which allows a man to eat his wife or parts of her body if the husband was afflicted with a severe hunger raised concern and debate over social media since yesterday evening. The Fatwa is interpreted as evidence of the sacrifice of women and obedience to her husband and her desire for the two to become one.”

[Here are some recent interviews with this article’s author]

(Read more from “The Mufti of Saudi Arabia Passes a Fatwa That a Muslim Can Cannibalize and Eat His Wife” HERE)

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Bobby Jindal Says Duck Dynasty Star Willie Robertson Would Be a ‘Great Running Mate’

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Photo Credit: Bloomberg Politics

Photo Credit: Bloomberg Politics

That’s the ticket?

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, who is considering a White House run, may have narrowed his choice of running mates. During a joint appearance at a Good Friday prayer breakfast in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Jindal was asked about picking Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson as his side man in the coming campaign.

“As a running mate? Sure, but as vice president—I assume that’s what you’re asking—not the other way around,” Jindal told reporters, adding, “He’s a great guy, I think he’d be a great running mate. It’d be a huge pay cut for him, so I’m not sure he’d be willing to do it.”

Jindal has made no secret of his admiration for Robertson and the rest of the Duck Dynasty clan. His header photo on Twitter, for example, features a gathering of the Jindal and Robertson clans. (Read more from “Bobby Jindal Says Duck Dynasty Star Willie Robertson Would Be a ‘Great Running Mate’” HERE)

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America Needs to Curb Immigration Flows

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borderwire18n-1-webBy Jeff Sessions. It is time for an honest discussion of immigration.

The first “great wave” of U.S. immigration took place from roughly 1880 to 1930. During this time, according to the Census Bureau, the foreign-born population doubled from about 6.7 million to 14.2 million people. Changes were then made to immigration law to reduce admissions, decreasing the foreign-born population until it fell to about 9.6 million by 1970. Meanwhile, during this low-immigration period, real median compensation for U.S. workers surged, increasing more than 90 percent from 1948 to 1973, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

In the 1960s, Congress lifted immigration caps and ushered in a “second great wave.” The foreign-born population more than quadrupled, to more than 40 million today.

This ongoing wave coincides with a period of middle-class contraction. The Pew Research Center reports: “The share of adults who live in middle-income households has eroded over time, from 61% in 1970 to 51% in 2013.” Harvard economist George Borjas has estimated that high immigration from 1980 to 2000 reduced the wages of lower-skilled U.S. workers by 7.4 percent — a stunning drop — with particularly painful reductions for African American workers. Weekly earnings today are lower than they were in 1973. (Read more from “America Needs to Curb Immigration Flows” HERE)

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Immigration Activists to Train ‘Community Navigators’ in Executive Amnesty

By Caroline May. A series of powerpoint presentations from the Committee for Immigration Reform Implementation sheds some light on how groups supportive of President Obama’s executive amnesty are strategizing to get people to sign up and defend the president’s actions.

“Once the applications are out, the best defense of the programs will be huge number of applications for [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals] and [Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents],” reads one of the powerpoint slide.

The powerpoints are part of a curriculum for what the coalition of immigration activists calls community navigators to help prepare people up for executive amnesty.

“Community navigators (or promotores) are volunteers who receive specialized training to provide quality immigration services for their communities in an empowering and effective way. The Committee for Immigration Reform Implementation (CIRI) has developed a curriculum for organizations to use to train navigators who will be engaged in outreach, organizing, screening, document preparation, and/or application assistance related to administrative relief implementation,” reads the program’s description. It’s slated for April 13.

“The training has been fully vetted by the CIRI subcommittee on regional coordination, as well as the CIRI steering committee. We will introduce the model and discuss how it can be adapted for various contexts and demographics,” it adds. (Read more from this story HERE)

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University Coach Fights Back for ‘American Sniper’; University Decides to Screen Movie After All

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american-sniper_612x380_0Perhaps there’s a fighting spirit at the University of Michigan after all — and no surprise that it comes from new football coach Jim Harbaugh.

After cancelling a screening of the blockbuster movie “American Sniper” because it made Muslim students feel “unsafe,” the university has had second thoughts and will show the film . . .

Trying to stay a step ahead of the firestorm unleashed in the wake of the school’s original decision, the Center for Campus Involvement announced on social media Tuesday that the movie will be shown in a “separate forum that provides an appropriate space for dialogue & reflection” . . .

The school cancelled the showing of the film after Muslim students circulated a letter online complaining that it “not only tolerates but promotes anti-Muslim … rhetoric and sympathizes with a mass killer” . . .

The Center for Campus Involvement initially apologized for scheduling the movie, saying in a statement “we deeply regret causing harm to members of our community.” But in a later statement, University Vice President for Student Life E. Royster Harper backed away entirely from the earlier decision, calling it a “mistake.” (Read more from “University Coach Fights Back for ‘American Sniper’; University Decides to Screen Movie After All” HERE)

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Cuba Protests Make Waves at Panama Summit

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Photo Credit: USA Today

Photo Credit: USA Today

By Rick Jervis. Cuba’s first-ever inclusion into the Summit of the Americas was expected be to the headline-grabbing news at the two-day gathering here that starts Friday.

So far, it’s delivered.

There have been fisticuffs between rival Cuban protesters, an angered Cuban delegation over credentials and reports of the killer of Cuban icon Che Guevara mingling with opposition leaders outside the meetings.

And that’s all before President Obama and Cuban President Raúl Castro have even set foot in this tropical city.

In the most talked-about incident, a group of anti-Castro Cuban demonstrators on Wednesday planned to lay flowers at a bust of Cuban patriarch José Martí near the Cuban embassy here when they were confronted by a group of pro-Castro activists. (Read more from “Cuba Protests Make Waves at Panama Summit” HERE)

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Historic Encounter with Cuba’s Castro Awaits Obama in Panama

By Josh Lederman. Turning the page on a half-century of hostility, President Barack Obama signaled Thursday he will soon remove Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, boosting hopes for improved ties as he prepared for a historic encounter with Cuban President Raul Castro.

Hours before his arrival in Panama for a regional summit, Obama said the U.S. State Department had finished its review of Cuba’s presence on the list, a stain on the island nation’s pride and a major stumbling block for efforts to mend U.S.-Cuba ties. A top senator confirmed that the agency had recommended removing Cuba from the list, all but ensuring action by the president within days.

“We don’t want to be imprisoned by the past,” Obama said during a visit to Kingston, Jamaica. “When something doesn’t work for 50 years, you don’t just keep on doing it. You try something new.”

With his optimistic assessment, Obama sought to set the tone for the U.S. and Cuba to come closer to closing the book on more than a half-century of estrangement, when he and Castro come face to face at the Summit of the Americas. Obama arrived Thursday evening in Panama City.

The highly anticipated interaction with Castro will test the power of personal diplomacy as the two leaders attempt to move past the sticking points that have interfered with their attempt to relaunch diplomatic relations. (Read more from this story HERE)

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Doctors Say Tick Borne ‘Powassan Virus’ Is Worse than Lyme Disease [+video]

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ticksIt’s even worse than Lyme disease. Ticks in our area have been found to carry a rare, potentially life-threatening, virus.

As CBS2’s Tracee Carrasco reported, doctors have warned that the Powassan virus, a rare, tick borne illness could be serious. It doesn’t have a treatment or a cure.

“The doctor just has to support you during the acute illness and hope that you survive,” Dr. Daniel Cameron explained.

Dr. Cameron is the President of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society. He said that if bitten by an infected tick you can get the virus within a matter of minutes, and while the symptoms are similar to Lyme disease, they are more severe.

“You can get seizures, high fevers, stiff neck. It comes on so suddenly that it’s the kind of thing people go to the emergency room for,” he explained. (Read more from “Doctors Say Tick Borne ‘Powassan Virus’ Is Worse than Lyme Disease” HERE)

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Gearing up for Robot Wars

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Photo Credit: Washington Times

Photo Credit: Washington Times

Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work on Wednesday outlined the Pentagon’s plans for an advanced war-fighting strategy involving robot weapons and remote-controlled warfare.

In a speech to the Army War College Strategy Conference, Mr. Work said the “third offset strategy” will rely heavily on autonomous systems that will allow machines and U.S. technological superiority to win wars.

The strategy follows two earlier “offsets” — the use of asymmetric means to counter enemy advantages. During the Cold War, strategic deterrence and tactical nuclear arms were used to offset the Soviet Union’s ground force numerical advantages. In the 1970s, precision-guided conventional weapons were deployed to offset the quantitative shortcomings of foreign conventional forces.

Mr. Work said precision-guided warfare is reaching the end of its shelf life as foreign states have developed countermeasures.

The third offset will be designed to defeat states like China, which is developing niche, offset weapons such as anti-ship ballistic missiles and anti-satellite arms. (Read more from “Gearing up for Robot Wars” HERE)

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President Endorses Legislation to Ban LGBTQ Conversion Therapy

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Photo Credit: Gospel Herald

Photo Credit: Gospel Herald

Late Wednesday evening, the White House released an official response to an online petition to enact Leelah’s Law to ban all LGBTQ “conversion therapy” for minors.

“We share your concern about its potentially devastating effects on the lives of transgender as well as gay, lesbian, bisexual and queer youth,” Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to the president, wrote on the blog.

This statement comes in response to the petition, posted to the “We the People” page of the White House website, and prompted by the December death of a transgender teen in Ohio. Leelah Alcorn, 17-years-old, wrote in a suicide note about being “forced to attend conversion therapy” . . .

In Wednesday’s statement, President Obama said the future of LGBTQ teens requires the support of family, friends, teachers and community, and that “it depends on us — on the kind of society we engender, the kind of future we build.”

The president – whose support for social issues like gay marriage has dipped and soared in the media for nearly 20 years – put his administration on the record as stating that it believes that it is unacceptable for anyone to say that any sexual orientation or gender identity is wrong. (Read more from “President Endorses Legislation to Ban LGBTQ Conversion Therapy” HERE)

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Boston Marathon Bomber Tsarnaev Convicted, May Face Death Sentence

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BomberDzhokhar Tsarnaev was found guilty on Wednesday of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing that killed three people and injured 264 others, and the jury will now decide whether to sentence him to death.

Tsarnaev, 21, is the surviving member of pair of ethnic Chechen brothers who planted the homemade pressure-cooker bombs that tore through the crowd at the famed race’s finish line in one of the most shocking attacks on U.S. soil since Sept. 11, 2001. He left a note behind describing the attack as an act of retribution for U.S. military campaigns in Muslim-dominated countries.

His lawyers opened Tsarnaev’s federal trial in Boston a month ago by bluntly admitting “it was him” who planted one of the bombs on April 15, 2013 and three days later shot dead a police officer, kicking off a day of chaos in Boston. After 11 hours of deliberations over two days, the jury found him guilty of all 30 criminal counts he faced.

The slightly built, lightly goateed defendant stood silently, shifting uncomfortably as a U.S. District court official read out each guilty finding, a process that took 25 minutes. The courtroom was packed with survivors of the attack including the parents of 8-year-old Martin Richard, the youngest fatality, and law enforcement officials, including former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis.

After the verdict was read, Karen Brassard, whose left leg was badly injured by one of the bombs, said she was glad that Tsarnaev had shown no emotion. “Personally I wouldn’t have bought it if he had,” Brassard said, as an early-spring sleet fell over Boston’s waterfront. “He has been, to use my word, arrogant walking in and out of the courtroom.” (Read more from “Boston Marathon Bomber Tsarnaev Convicted, May Face Death Sentence” HERE)

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