Congress: Hillary’s Benghazi Investigation Let Top Officials Escape Blame

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Photo Credit: Getty

Photo Credit: Getty

The State Department’s investigation into the Sept. 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi was not independent and failed to hold senior State Department officials accountable for the failures that led to the death of four Americans, according to a new investigative report compiled by the House Oversight Committee.

The Administrative Review Board, chosen by then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, unfairly placed the blame for the terrorist attack on four mid-level officials while ignoring the role of very senior officials in Clinton’s State Department for decisions about security in Benghazi, according to the new report led by Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA). Also, the structure of the ARB and the culture in Clinton’s State Department raised questions about the independence and integrity of the review, according to Issa’s committee.

“The ARB blamed systemic failures and leadership and management deficiencies within two bureaus, but downplayed the importance of decisions made at senior levels of the Department. Witnesses questioned how much these decisions influenced the weaknesses that led to the inadequate security posture in Benghazi,” the report stated. “The ARB’s decision to cite certain officials as accountable for what happened in Benghazi appears to have been based on factors that had little or no connection to the security posture at U.S. diplomatic facilities in Libya.”

The Daily Beast first reported in May that the four officials removed from their jobs and placed on administrative leave as a result of the State Department’s ARB report on Benghazi had never been told what they were accused of, never been given any opportunity to appeal their punishments, and never were officially fired. One of the officials, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Ray Maxwell, had little to no role in Libya security policy and was not even alleged to have been connected to the security failures leading up to the Benghazi attack.

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The Weeping Baby Elephant and the Silent Scream (+video)

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Photo Credit: LifeSiteNews

Photo Credit: LifeSiteNews

For a few hours on Thursday, the all-seeing eyes of the world’s media were fixed on the eyes of a pachyderm.

In a story that tugged at heartstrings around the globe, the media reported that a baby elephant named Zhuangzhuang, born in a Chinese zoo on August 30, cried for five hours after being rejected by his mother.

When zoo trainers saw her trying to stomp the newborn to death in her cage, they thought it was an accident. But after the mother tried to kill her child a second time, personnel had to remove the calf for his own safety.

By nature’s design, a child loves his parent, even a murderous one, and the tears began to flow until his eyes turned red. He couldn’t bear to be parted from his mother and it was his mother who was trying to kill him,” a spokesman from the Shendiaoshan Wild Animal Natural Reserve Area said.

On a slow news day, reporters from across the earth focused on the infant elephant. His story of abandonment began filling news outlets…

But none made the obvious connection: How does a human baby whose mother tries to kill him react?

Read more from this story HERE.

Watch what Happens when a Pair of Girls Open-Carry in a Walmart (Updated)

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semi-autoA video uploaded to YouTube on Friday night appears to show a group of young women being hassled by a police officer for open-carrying their firearms into a Missouri Walmart.

According to the video’s description, the “four young ladies went for a quick bite to eat in Marshfield Missouri at a local Walmart.” A police officer, who said he was responding to a call, then showed up on the scene and demanded the group of women — even those not carrying a firearm — immediately produce identification.

Even a U.S. Passport from one of the individuals doesn’t satisfy the officer, who demands to know if she has any other form of identification.

The video then shows the unidentified officer appear to detain the girls outside. [Click HERE for the Police Chief’s professional response to the situation].

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California Bill Allows Nurses, Others to Perform Abortions

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Photo Credit: LifeNews

Photo Credit: LifeNews

California’s liberal Gov. Jerry Brown now has a bill on his desk allowing nurses, certified midwives, and other specially trained clinicians to perform early-term vacuum aspiration and medicine-induced abortions.

AB 154, whose main sponsor is Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California and is supported by numerous pro-choice groups, passed both legislative chambers this past week and is now on Brown’s desk, reports Breitbart News.

If Brown signs the bill, it will allow non-physician staff at Planned Parenthood’s clinics, among others, to obtain licenses to perform the abortion procedures.

Planned Parenthood says the legislation is necessary because a shortage of doctors in some parts of the state means that women often have to wait until later in their pregnancies to terminate them, which is a riskier procedure.

“Early abortion access is a critical public health issue,” Planned Parenthood says on its legislative page.

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The Real Story Behind the Short Shorts

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This is the REAL story behind the short-shorts!

scott-front-back

I know the world has varying degrees of what is modest and what is not when it comes to clothing. In our family we have pretty definite modesty guidelines; No mid-drift or low-cut shirts, no short shorts, short skirts and we even go as far as saying no sleeveless shirts unless playing sports or on the beach. Having raised four daughters and three sons, I’m a bit protective. Some may call me old fashion, but I call it “A Dad who loves his daughters” (and sons too) I know some of you may be rolling your eyes and that’s okay, my daughter does it all the time.

I’m a firm believer that the way we dress sends messages about us, and it influences the way we and others act. (okay okay – I’m the first to admit I look like a redneck and I may say “crick” instead of “creek”) But that’s beside the point. My teenage daughter day after day continues to wear clothing that I, as her father, feel is inappropriate and immodest. Her mother and I feel the same about the importance of dressing modest. With that said, let’s move onto the night of the happening …….

In an effort to try to spend time with just the family we reserve our Monday evenings for just that. On this particular Monday, we decided to go out to eat (something we had not done in a very long time) and made plans for after dinner to use our pass-of-all passes to go miniature golfing at Trafalga, a nearby “fun center”. I heard my wife ask our daughter if she would please change into some longer shorts before leaving. She said “NO!” Instead of turning her response and disrespectful attitude into a major battle, I decided to make a “small” statement on how her short-shorts maybe aren’t as “cute” as she thinks!

I ran into my bedroom as the family was loading into the car. I grabbed some scissors and cut some old worn out pants into a set of short-shorts with the ends of the pockets hanging out the bottom. There was only about an inch of material below the crotch of the shorts. To add frosting to the cake, I looked down and noticed a shirt that my older daughter had given me for Father’s Day. At the time I thought “where the heck would I ever wear this?” Wow! I just found the perfect moment! I was a bit worried about going through with this, but felt that it was “OKAY” to make this statement in the privacy of our own home. I was certain that when my daughter saw me, that would be as far as it would have to go to make the point.

Read more from this story HERE.

Tattooed National Guard Sergeant Theresa Vail Takes on Miss America

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Photo Credit: Facebook

Photo Credit: Facebook

Watch out Miss America, Miss Kansas Theresa Vail is here.

The Miss America pageant was started as way to keep tourists coming to Atlantic City after Labor Day in the 1920s.

With the rise of the feminist movement and the civil rights movement, the pageant has tried to change with the times and to portray the contestants as something more than air headed, wholesome, white women whose goals in life are to either be a rocket scientist or a model, with the underlying emphasis on helping to bring world peace.

In the 1960s, the contest eliminated rule number seven, according to PBS’s 2011 documentary “Miss America,” which required contestants to be “in good health and white.” Professional women began competing in the 1970s as part of the pageants continuing effort to evolve.

But nothing previously adapted by the “scholarship” pageant will change perceptions as much as when Miss Kansas Theresa Vail steps on the stage in her bathing suit this weekend.

Read more from this story HERE.

Hillary Clinton Heckled on Benghazi During Award Ceremony

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Photo Credit: Matt Rourke

Photo Credit: Matt Rourke

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton fielded hecklers who hounded her on Benghazi at the tail end of an award acceptance speech she delivered at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening.

Mrs. Clinton was accepting the 2013 Liberty Medal, an honor to recognize her career in public service and advocacy for women’s rights, CBS reported. She told the crowd of hundreds of the U.S. need to balance national security with human rights issues in Syria, and called for American politicians to cross party aisles and strike a chord of unity.

“When we fail to make progress on the challenges facing our people at home, our standing in the world suffers,” she said, Breitbart.com reported.

Read more from this story HERE.

Middle School Teacher Disciplined After Showing Gay Rights Rap Video in Class

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Photo Credit: Wikimedia

Photo Credit: Wikimedia

A North Carolina teacher was disciplined for showing a music video supporting gay rights to a middle school class last week.

The Taylorsville Times reported Alexander County Schools Associate Superintendent Dr. Jeff Peal said the teacher is back to work this week but showed “an inappropriate video…outside the bounds of the curriculum” that merited “disciplinary action.”

The rap video was Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ “Same Love,” which was written in collaboration with Seattle-based singer-songwriter Mary Lambert. It appeared on Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ debut album “The Heist” in 2012.

Here’s the full music video (content warning — some strong language):

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Abortion Practitioners Played Catch With Bodies of Babies Killed in Abortion

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Photo Credit: Life News

Photo Credit: Life News

Abortion providers see the bodies of aborted babies daily. They deal with the grief and heartache of seeing women through what is almost always a difficult and painful experience. Sometimes the stress of what they are doing comes out in disturbing ways. According to Father Frank Pavone from Priests for Life:

Former workers in the abortion industry have told us stories about playing games of toss with aborted babies in the hallway. Your mind has to invert what is going on: to make it a game, a joke, something positive. It’s the only way to keep from going crazy — and some of them do.

When I read this, it reminded me of another quote I ran across in a book by Rachel MacNair, who was known for working with Feminists for Life. MacNair’s book, Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress: The Psychological Consequences of Killing, discusses the emotional problems that plague those who kill. It discusses the pressures faced by soldiers in wartime as well as those affecting abortion clinic workers who kill babies on a regular basis. She cites studies that show that alcoholism, suicidal depression, and other emotional problems plague clinic workers and doctors who perform abortions.

Read more from this story HERE.

Washington D.C. Wants 24-Hour Wait for Tattoos, Piercings But No Abortion Limits

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Photo Credit: Binder.donedat

Photo Credit: Binder.donedat

Washington, D.C. may soon institute a 24-hour waiting period before a tattoo or piercing can be done. But local officials have no interest in a waiting period before an abortion — as the District of Columbia remains one of the most ardently pro-abortion places in the country.

From a TownHall report:

Najma Roberts, a spokeswoman for the Health Department, said that the waiting period for a tattoo or piercing was necessary so people do not get inked or pierced with something they may regret:

“We’re making sure when that decision is made that you’re in the right frame of mind, and you don’t wake up in the morning…saying, ‘Oh my God, what happened?’?”

Most tattoo parlors have policies stating that they will refuse to tattoo someone who is visibly intoxicated.

Read more from this story HERE.