Woman Gives IRS Scammers Taste of Their Own Medicine (+video)

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They claim they are IRS agents threatening you with arrest or court action if you don’t send them money immediately for back taxes. It’s a phone scam that’s been sweeping the nation. But when the scammers targeted Rachel Fitzsimmons of Denver, she fought back.

“I wanted to give them a taste of their own medicine,” said Fitzsimmons, a sales and marketingprofessional.

When the scammers left her voicemail messages on consecutive days this month, telling her they were filing a lawsuit against her for failing to pay her taxes, Fitzsimmons said, “I was really scared. I never had someone say they were filing a lawsuit against me, especially the IRS.”

But after a little research, Fitzsimmons realized it was nothing more than a scam which the U.S. government says has swindled nearly 3,000 people out of $14 million so far. The scammers typically alter their caller ID number to make it appear they are calling from an IRS office and pose as IRS agents offering up badge numbers and identification numbers.

So Fitzsimmons called back and recorded the entire conversation then put it on YouTube, hoping it would help others avoid falling for the scam. (Read more about the woman who fought back against IRS scammers HERE)

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State Law Allows Schools to Demand Students’ Social Media Passwords

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By Kara Pendleton. In an effort to address the growing problem of cyber-bullying, an Illinois law passed last year gives schools the right to demand student social media passwords. This law applies to all students from kindergarten through college.

Effective January 1st, each school was required to send notification to students through the student handbook, as well as, provide parents with notice of the change in policy. This week, several school districts satisfied this requirement with a letter to parents.

A sample of the letter to parents is included in a “Student Handbook Model” online. The model letter notes:

School authorities may require a student or his or her parent or guardian to provide a password or other related account information in order to gain access to the student’s account or profile on a social networking website if school authorities have reasonable cause to believe that a student’s account on a social networking website contains evidence that a student has violated a school disciplinary rule or procedure.

He letter goes on to define “social networking” and ensures that email passwords are not included under the law. As expected, both parents and students had strong reactions. (Read more about the schools demanding social media passwords HERE)

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Father of ‘Snapchat Bullies’ Loses Job

By Lindsey LaBelle. Thousands of people are offering support and encouragement for a Prior Lake, Minnesota family after the father confronted his daughter’s bullies in a YouTube video. The father of those bullies lost his job just two days after the video was posted.

Brad Knudson recorded a nearly 6-minute YouTube video complete with racist voicemails from the father of two children who apparently sent his 8th grade daughter Dierdra a series of malicious Snapchats.

Deron Puro was an independent contractor at a financial firm, and his employer confirmed to Fox 9 on Wednesday that he is no longer associated with that company as of Jan. 21. (Read more from this story HERE)

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Largest March for Life in the World

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Photo Credit: Life Site NewsThe 42nd annual March for Life kicked off Thursday with an hour-long rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as hundreds of thousands of pro-life activists gathered beneath sunny skies and surprisingly warm temperatures to hear speeches from pro-life politicians and prominent movement leaders.

The rally opened with a benediction from Roman Catholic Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, KY, who was flanked by both Catholic and Orthodox clerics as he led the crowd in prayer and asked God’s blessing on the March.

After the benediction, March for Life Chairman Patrick Kelly took the podium to welcome the marchers, taking special notice of their overwhelming youth. “When I look out on this enormous crowd, I see a tide turning in America,” Kelly said. “The March for Life is getting bigger and younger every year.”

“History is on our side,” said Kelly, “because history is always on the side of those who fight for human dignity and human life.” He said that after four decades, the March for Life “has become the largest human rights march in the world.”

March for Life President Jeanne Monahan Mancini elicited happy cheers from the crowd as she took the stage and asked, “What do y’all think about this weather?” Thursday’s mild conditions stood in marked contrast to the weather during last year’s march, which took place in near-zero temperatures with biting winds, putting marchers at risk of frostbite and causing electronics to fail due to the extreme cold. (Read more about the largest march for life in the world HERE)

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State Persecuting 88-Year-Old Doctor Who Treats Poor From His Car

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Photo Credit: The New American
Doctors’ house calls are considered a thing of the past, but not in the appointment book of Dr. Carrol Frazier Landrum, an 88-year-old physician from Edwards, Mississippi. The good doctor will see you no matter who you are, where you are, or how much money you have — as long his 2007 Toyota Camry can deliver him to your location. But now his state’s medical board wants to see him gone.

Dr. Landrum, a WWII veteran, was forced to make a change after crime drove him from his Edwards, Mississippi, office two years ago, and he couldn’t find another space suited to his practice. “I had my car, and I realized I could do most everything out of it that I needed to be doing,” said Landrum, according to the Clarion-Ledger. The paper continued, and “for many in the town of Edwards’ 1,034 residents and others in the metro area, that car has become a lifeline — it’s the makeshift office of the 88-year-old Dr. Landrum, who is the only practicing physician in the town.”

And many of the doctor’s trips take him beyond the town. The octogenarian — in practice for 55 years — sometimes drives 50 miles to meet people in their homes, in a parking lot, or by the roadside. It’s a vital service in Mississippi, the nation’s poorest state, where rural transportation is limited and an emergency room visit can spell financial disaster . . .

Unfortunately, government authorities don’t seem have much of a heart for Landrum or the poor. The Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure has asked Dr. Landrum “to surrender his medical license, which he’s carried in his pocket with pride since Dwight D. Eisenhower was president,” writes the Post. (Read more about the state persecuting 88-year-old doctor HERE)

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Former Bachelorette and Fiancee Call it Quits, Here’s the Incredible Reason Why

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Josh Murray and Andi Dorfman got engaged on the popular hit reality show “Bachelorette” back in 2014 and have recently decided to call it quits. Sadly, for this show about finding love, this is the outcome more often than not.

Sources say the two worked hard to make their relationship work, but in spite of their efforts have decided to go their separate ways.

On January 8, Josh Murray reportedly posted a picture of a man down on his knees and the words “Lord, help me to have faith in your plan.”

Judging by this statement and social media posts from his mother, he is a Christian and so is the rest of his family. Josh’s mom, Lauren Murray, wrote on her Facebook page saying:

“The engagement time did it’s job in helping them determine what’s best for them. I know we all wanted the storybook ending but I trust The Lord has an even better journey for each of them and that makes my heart happy. Thank you for your love and messages. I’m overwhelmed & humbled by your words. XO.” (Read more about the former bachelorette and fiancee calling it quits HERE)

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Mind Blowing: Mummy Mask Reveals Ancient Text from Gospel of Mark, Could Have Been Copied by an Actual Witness to Jesus Christ (+video)

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Photo Credit: Live Science [Publisher’s note: The fragment of the Gospel of Mark was dated using a combination of techniques, including examination of other document fragments found with it. The scientists involved in the project are convinced that it was written before 90 A.D., less than 57 years after Christ’s crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension] A text that may be the oldest copy of a gospel known to exist — a fragment of the Gospel of Mark that was written during the first century, before the year 90 — is set to be published.

At present, the oldest surviving copies of the gospel texts date to the second century (the years 101 to 200).

This first-century gospel fragment was written on a sheet of papyrus that was later reused to create a mask that was worn by a mummy. Although the mummies of Egyptian pharaohs wore masks made of gold, ordinary people had to settle for masks made out of papyrus (or linen), paint and glue. Given how expensive papyrus was, people often had to reuse sheets that already had writing on them.

In recent years scientists have developed a technique that allows the glue of mummy masks to be undone without harming the ink on the paper. The text on the sheets can then be read. . .

Evans says that the text was dated through a combination of carbon-14 dating, studying the handwriting on the fragment and studying the other documents found along with the gospel. These considerations led the researchers to conclude that the fragment was written before the year 90. With the nondisclosure agreement in place, Evans said that he can’t say much more about the text’s date until the papyrus is published. (Read more about the ancient text from Gospel of Mark HERE)

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3 Year Old Cancer Patient Tells Friend She’s Going to Disneyland (+video)

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Photo Credit: ABC News There’s nothing quite like a chat with a good friend to get you excited for an upcoming trip — even when that friend is 3 years old.

“Juni! You’re going to Disneeeylaaaand!” Violet, 3, squealed in a bon voyage video to her friend, Juniper, 3.

The girls were cancer treatment buddies battling retinoblastoma, a rare form of cancer that starts in the eye. They had similar requests for the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Violet wanted to meet Mickey Mouse. And Juniper wanted to meet Minnie Mouse.

Violet went to Disneyland first, and when she heard her buddy Juniper was going, she wanted to send her off with a farewell video — while wearing a Cinderella costume, of course . . .

“Juni, I’m so happy your wish is coming true,” Violet said into the camera. “I love you.” (Read more about what the three-year old cancer patient did HERE)

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Canadians Proposing to Euthanize Mentally Disabled Patients

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In the 1990s the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that assisted suicide is not a constitutional right. But the Court has again taken up the issue–and hence, I suspect the handwriting is on the wall.

That seems so clear that culture of death advocates are already making serious [euthanasia] proposals. . . University of Victoria bioethicist Eike-Henner W. Kluge has made news with a “Legislative Proposal” that would:

1. Establish euthanasia death courts–also being proposed in the UK–in a country that doesn’t permit capital punishment;
2. Allow a broad license to be euthanized based on almost wholly subjective criteria;
3. Allow the courts to order the incompetent to be euthanized.

Here are a few specifics. First, the right to be killed would be totally subjective, based on “values” of the person wanting to die:

If a person suffers from an incurable and irremediable disease or medical condition, and if that person experiences the disease or condition as violating the fundamental values of that person.

Good grief, that could mean anything beyond the transitory. (Read more about the proposal to euthanize mentally disabled patients HERE)

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Man Amazingly Survives Horrific Crash

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Kaleb Whitby had to be in Council, Idaho, by 9 a.m. Mountain Time. He left his pregnant wife and their 2-year-old son back in Washington’s Tri-Cities area — Pasco, Kennewick and Richland. The farmer had been on the road for a while, and still had more than 100 miles to go. He had two truckloads of cattle waiting for him in Council.

Headed up a slight hill into a curve, Whitby decided to pass the semi-truck in front of him, but then thought better of it. The fog was too thick. He backed off.

When he rounded the curve and started descending, Whitby saw the semi again — but this time it was jackknifed across the interstate. He swerved to the right, but ended up hitting the back end of the trailer. It flipped him around, and instantly his truck stalled — leaving him splayed out with his passenger side facing oncoming traffic.

Then the headlights of an oncoming semi-truck filled the window frame.

“I just braced and hoped that everything would be all right,” Whitby told the paper, noting that he also starting praying as the truck was seconds from slamming into him. (Read more about the man amazingly survives the crash HERE)

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Miss Lebanon’s Selfie With Miss Israel Causes Outrage in Arab World

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By Reuters. A Israeli beauty queen’s selfie has caused a stir in Lebanon, with some Lebanese saying their country’s contestant at the Miss Universe pageant should be stripped of her title for consorting with the enemy.

Miss Israel Doron Matalon posted a photo of herself and Miss Lebanon Saly Greige smiling together at pageant preparations in Miami, where the winner will be picked on January 25.

The two countries are technically at war, although the border has been largely quiet since their 2006 conflict. The Lebanese risk prison if they call or travel to Israel and all Israeli products are banned in Lebanon.

Some Lebanese have demanded on social media that Greige lose her title for contacts with a citizen of the enemy state. (Read more about the selfie with Miss Israel HERE)

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Miss Israel’s Response After Miss Lebanon Distances Herself From Their Selfie

By Algemeiner. Miss Israel, Doron Matalon, has responded to the controversy surrounding a ‘selfie’ she took together with Miss Lebanon at the ongoing Miss Universe competition in Florida, saying that she is saddened, but not surprised by the Arab beauty’s decision to strongly distance herself from the picture.

“It doesn’t surprise me, but it still makes me sad. Too bad you can not put the hostility out of the game,” Matalon wrote on Instagram on Sunday. “Only for three weeks of an experience of a lifetime that we can meet girls from around the world and also from the neighboring country.”

The controversial picture was first posted by Matalon on January 11th and was captioned: “Good morning from us!”

After an avalanche of criticism from within the Arab world, which often frowns on contact with Israel, Miss Lebanon, Saly Greige, on Friday issued a stunning repudiation of the image and even claimed to have been avoiding Miss Israel throughout the competition. (Read more from this story HERE)

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